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THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 

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IN  MEMORY  OF 

CARROLL  ALCOTT 

PRESENTED  BY 

CARROLL  ALCOTT  MEMORIAL 
LIBRARY  FUND  COMMITTEE 


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OLCCJ^ 


WHEN   I   WAS 


A  BOY   IN   CHINA 


BY 

VAN   PHOU  LEE 


BOSTON 
D    LOTHROP    COMPANY 

FRANKLIN   AND  HAWLEY  STREETS 


\  % 


COPYRIGHT,  1887, 

BY 

D.  LOTHROP  COMPANY. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGB 

I.  INFANCY 7 

II.  THE  HOUSE  AND  HOUSEHOLD  ...  17 

III.  CHINESE  COOKERY 26 

IV.  GAMES  AND  PASTIMES       ....  34 
V.  GIRLS  OF  MY  ACQUAINTANCE   .       .       .  41 

VI.  SCHOOLS  AND  SCHOOL  LIFE      .       .  50 

VII.  RELIGIONS 67 

VIII.  CHINESE  HOLIDAYS    .        .        .        .        .  72 

IX.  STORIES  AND  STORY-TELLERS    ...  81 

X.  How  I  WENT  TO  SHANGHAI     ...  92 

XI.  HOW  I  PREPARED  FOR  AMERICA         .          .  99 

XII.  FIRST  EXPERIENCES  IN  AMERICA     .       .  105 


2218725 


WHEN   I   WAS   A   BOY   IN 
CHINA. 

CHAPTER  I. 

INFANCY. 

ON  a  certain  day  in  the  year  1861, 1  was  born. 
I  cannot  give  you  the  exact  date,  because 
the  Chinese  year  is  different  from  the  English  year, 
and  our  months  being  lunar,  that  is,  reckoned  by 
the  revolution  of  the  moon  around  the  earth,  are 
consequently  shorter  than  yours.  We  reckon  time 
from  the  accessions  of  Emperors,  and  also  by  cy- 
cles of  sixty  years  each.  The  year  of  my  birth, 
1861,  was  the  first  year  of  the  Emperor  Tung-che. 
We  have  twelve  months  ordinarily ;  and  we  say,  in- 
stead of  "January,  February,"  etc.,"  Regular  Moon, 
Second  Moon,  Third  Moon,"  etc.  Each  third  year 
is  a  leap  year,  and  has  an  extra  month  so  as  to 

7 


8  WHEN   I    WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

make  each  of  the  lunar  years  equal  to  a  solar  year. 
Accordingly,  taking  the  English  calendar  as  a  stan- 
dard, our  New  Year's  Day  varies.  Therefore,  al- 
though I  am  sure  that  I  was  born  on  the  twenty- 
first  day  of  the  Second  Moon,  in  Chinese,  I  don't 
know  my  exact  birthday  in  English;  and  conse- 
quently, living  in  America  as  I  have  for  many 
years,  I  have  been  cheated  of  my  birthday  celebra- 
tion. 

Being  bora  a  boy,  there  was  a  deal  of  rejoicing 
in  the  family,  and  among  numerous  relatives.  If 
I  had  happened  to  be  a  girl,  it  would  have  been 
very  different;  the  reason  for  which  I  will  tell 
in  a  chapter  on  "  Girls  of  my  Acquaintance."  My 
aged  grandfather  smiled  with  satisfaction  when  the 
news  reached  him  in  Fungshun,  three  hundred 
miles  away  to  the  East,  where  he  was  holding  of- 
fice as  Literary  Sub-Chancellor.  Congratulations 
poured  in  in  the  shape  of  presents  of  rich  cloths, 
jewelry  and  pigs'  feet.  These  gifts  came  a  month 
after  my  birth,  which  day  is  always  celebrated  as 
a  christening-day  is  in  England.  On  that  day, 
which  we  call  the  "  Completion  of  the  Moon,"  my 


INFANCY.  9 

name  was  given  to  me.  I  started  with  the  surname 
"  Lee  "  which  my  family  and  clan  possess  in  com- 
mon; and  to  that  "Yan  Phou,"  which  signifies 
"Wealth  by  Imperial  Favor,"  was  added  —  Lee  Yan 
Phou.  But  I  now  arrange  my  name  in  accordance 
with  American  custom. 

The  names  given  on  those  occasions  are  not  like 
your  "  Jack,"  "  Harry,"  or  "  Dick,"  but  are  usually 
words  chosen  "  from  the  dictionary "  for  their 
lucky  import,  or  because  they  are  supposed  to  pos- 
sess the  power  of  warding  off  evil  influences  in  the 
child's  horoscope.  You  should  know  that  in  China 
a  baby's  fortune  is  told  almost  as  soon  as  he  is 
born,  the  events  of  his  life  being  foretold  with  sur- 
prising particularity. 

In  order  to  ward  off  malignant  influences  from 
the  future  of  their  child,  rich  people  often  spend 
great  sums  of  money.  To  some  deities,  especially 
to  the  God  of  Longevity,  vows  are  made,  and  prom- 
ises of  presents  annually,  if  the  god  will  protect 
baby  and  bring  him  through  certain  crises  in  his 
life ;  and  thus,  willing  or  unwilling,  the  idol  is  sup- 
posed bound  to  be  the  child's  tutelary  guardian. 


10  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

Also  blind  fortune-tellers  are  paid  to  intercede  for 
the  infant  with  their  particular  idol.  If  you  were 
living  in  China,  you  would  notice  the  strings  of 
amulets  which  youngsters  wear.  They  are  some- 
times made  of  gold  and  silver;  but  often  these 
necklaces  are  composed  of  mere  scraps  of  paper 
with  talismanic  characters  penned  by  priests ;  they 
are  supposed  to  be  efficacious  in  scaring  away  evil 
spirits.  The  priests,  fortune-tellers,  lessees  of  tem- 
ples, clairvoyants,  and  astrologers  drive  a  flourish- 
ing trade  in  these  mysterious  wares.  For  these 
charms,  and  the  friendliness  of  the  idols  being  a 
matter  of  life  or  death,  of  future  happiness  or 
misery  to  the  beloved  child,  of  course  the  poor  are 
just  as  eager  to  spend  money  in  this  way  as  the 
rich,  and  through  baby's  life  they  continue  to  pay 
annual  instalments  of  money  for  these  things. 

On  my  christening-day  friends  came  to  see  me 
and  to  congratulate  my  family,  and  a  feast  was  made 
in  my  honor.  When  the  guests  departed  they 
carried  each  a  slice  of  roast  pork  as  a  return-gift. 
Roast  pig  is  the  national  festal  dish  in  China,  as 
you  will  learn.  No  occasion  is  complete  without 


INFANCY.  1 1 

it,  whether  it  be  a  religious  festival,  the  worship  of 
ancestors,  a  wedding,  or  a  birthday  celebration. 
One  feature  of  my  christening  feast  was  that  my 
mother  was  permitted  to  have  all  she  wanted  of 
pigs'  feet  and  ginger  pickled  together.  It  is  be- 
lieved that  baby's  food  will  be  more  abundant  if 
the  mother  eat  plentifully  of  this  delicacy. 

From  what  I  have  since  observed  I  suppose  that 
as  it  was  the  winter  season  I  was  wrapped  in  "  swad- 
dling clothes ;  "  and  I  think  the  layers  of  garments 
would  have  caused  the  death  of  any  ordinary 
American  baby.  First  came  much  underwear  of 
cotton  cloth;  then  a  jacket ;  then  another  jacket; 
then  a  gown  padded  with  cotton ;  then  still  an- 
other quilted  coat  of  bright  calico ;  and  over  all  a 
bib.  I  wore  a  cap  too,  but  no  shoes  until  I  was 
able  to  walk.  My  hair  was  shaved  off  except  a 
small  tuft,  which  was  the  beginning,  the  embryo, 
you  may  say,  of  the  queue  of  the  future. 

Speaking  of  the  winter  season :  The  climate  in 
the  city  of  my  nativity  is  like  that  of  Canton  which 
lies  seventy-five  miles  to  the  north.  Although  no 
snow  falls,  and  although  ice  is  an  unknown  qual- 


12  WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN    CHINA. 

ity  there,  yet  the  weather  is  sufficiently  chilly  to 
make  a  fire  desirable.  But  Chinese  houses, 
strangely  enough  I  now  think,  are  built  for  sum- 
mer, and  to  counteract  heat  rather  than  to  keep  off 
cold ;  and  no  such  furniture  as  a  heating  stove  is 
known,  neither  furnaces,  nor  steam-heaters.  So 
for  warmth  we  resort  to  thick  clothing,  and  all 
sleeves  are  cut  long  with  that  end  in  view.  A 
funny  consequence  is  that  old  and  young  look  twice 
as  big  in  winter  as  in  summer. 

As  a  baby  I  had  my  playthings  —  bells,  rattles 
and  other  knick-knacks.  But  there  is  no  such 
blessed  thing  as  a  cradle  among  the  Chinese  in 
which  baby  may  be  soothed  and  rocked  to  sleep, 
neither  the  healthful,  separate  "crib."  I  had  to 
sleep  with  my  mother;  and  I  have  not  a  doubt 
that  I  used  to  cry  a  deal  because  I  felt  too  warm,  for 
the  bedclothes  —  which  were  plentiful  and  heavily 
padded — would  sometimes  cover  me  all  up  and 
make  it  difficult  for  me  to  breathe.  I  would  be  suffo- 
cated, smothered,  and  of  course  I  would  cry ;  and 
my  mother  would  do  everything  except  give  me  air 
and  liberty;  numberless  were  the  medicines  ad- 


INFANCY.  13 

ministered,  for  Chinese  doctors  pretend  they  can 
cure  the  crying  of  children  at  night.  American 
mothers  have  no  idea  what  impositions  Chinese 
mothers  suffer  from  physicians  and  sellers  of 
charms,  on  account  of  their  superstitious  fears  con- 
cerning the  health  and  welfare  of  their  children. 

In  the  daytime  I  used  to  sit  in  a  bamboo  chair 
which  had  a  board  in  front  that  slid  back  and  forth 
and  served  both  as  a  table  to  hold  my  playthings 
and  a  lock  to  keep  me  in  my  seat,  for  it  came  up 
to  my  waist,  so  it  was  not  possible  for  me  to  leap 
out.  In  this  stiff  fixture  I  used  to  sit  hours  at  a 
time  and  watch  my  mother  spin  flax. 

Our  Oriental  tastes  are  too  simple  to  contrive 
such  luxuries  as  baby-carriages.  We  have  instead 
our  "  carrying  tie."  This  consists  of  a  piece  of  thick 
cloth,  about  two  feet  square,  lined  inside,  and  em- 
broidered outside  with  beautiful  figures,  and  having 
four  bands  sewed  on,  one  at  each  corner.  To  put 
me  into  this  cloth  carriage,  the  one  who  was  to 
carry  me,  my  mother  or  a  servant,  would  lean  over; 
I  was  then  laid  on  her  back,  the  "  carriage  "  thrown 
over  me,  and  the  upper  bands  tied  around  the 


14  WHEN   I   WAS   A   BOY   IN    CHINA. 

bosom  of  the  carrier,  the  lower  ones  around  her 
waist.  My  legs,  of  course,  dangled  outside ;  but 
it  was  nevertheless  a  very  comfortable  seat  for  me, 
though  I  doubt  if  it  were  so  pleasant  for  the  one 
who  lugged  me  about.  The  primary  object  of  this 
contrivance  was  to  get  me  to  sleep,  and  many  a  fine 
nap  I  must  have  had  in  my  "  carriage."  If  I  per- 
sisted in  keeping  awake,  my  carrier  would  sing  to 
me  a  lullaby  which,  being  ordinary  conversation  put 
to  music  more  or  less  tuneful,  is  hardly  worth  a 
translation. 

My  earliest  recollections  are  of  a  sitting-room  on 
the  ground  floor  of  my  grandsire's  house,  the  right 
wing  of  which  was  assigned  to  my  father  at  the  time 
of  his  marriage.  It  was  very  long  and  narrow,  with 
bare  brick  walls  in  which  no  windows  opened  upon 
the  street ;  all  the  light  and  ventilation  came  through 
a  long  narrow  opening  in  the  roof.  Rain  came 
through  too,  as  well  as  light  and  air,  and  had  to  be 
drained  off. 

The  furniture  of  this  room  was  simple  ;  a  bam- 
boo sofa,  a  square  table,  a  few  stiff-backed  chairs, 
three  long  and  narrow  benches  and  a  couple  of 


INFANCY.  15 

stools.  This  ascetic  simplicity  in  furnishings  may 
be  noticed  everywhere  in  China ;  nowhere  are  even 
the  rich  inclined  to  indulge  in  luxury  to  any  ex- 
tent. 

I  remember  very  well  the  comfortless  Chinese 
bed.  Boards  took  the  place  of  springs,  and  benches 
supported  these  boards.  In  ours,  surmounting  all 
was  a  heavy  canopy  frame,  which,  when  new,  was 
evidently  gilded  and  carved.  By  this  frame  was 
suspended  mosquito  nettings,  an  absolutely  neces- 
sary arrangement.  The  ground  was  our  floor, 
overlaid  with  bricks  a  foot  square  as  carpet.  No 
chimney  was  to  be  seen  anywhere,  no  heating 
apparatus,  hardly  any  ornaments.  In  summer  these 
rooms  were  cool  and  comfortable  ;  but  the  winter's 
wind  and  cold  rendered  them  cheerless. 

There  is  only  one  event  of  my  infant  life  worthy 
of  record,  the  death  of  my  adopted  father.  He  was 
my  father's  brother  and  had  accompanied  my 
grandfather  to  the  city  of  his  literary  administra^ 
tion.  He  was  but  a  youth  of  twenty-one,  unmar- 
ried and  studying  for  the  public  examinations, 
On  his  deathbed,  he  designated  me  as  his  adopted 


1 6  WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN    CHINA. 

son  and  heir.  My  grandfather  ratified  the  choice, 
so  that  without  my  consent  I  was  transferred  from 
my  father's  hands  into  my  uncle's. 

This  mode  of  adoption  is  common.  Usually  the 
adopted  son  belongs  to  the  same  family  or  clan, 
but  not  always  ;  in  any  case  he  has  the  rights,  privi- 
leges and  duties  of  a  born  son.  Among  the  rights 
may  be  mentioned  the  inheriting  of  property,  and 
among  the  duties  the  annual  offerings  at  the  family 
altar  and  the  grave,  and  the  daily  burning  of  re- 
membrance incense. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE   HOUSE  AND   HOUSEHOLD. 

BABYHOOD  is  the  most  enjoyable  stage  in  the 
life  of  an  Oriental.  It  is  the  only  period 
when  his  wishes  are  regarded  and  when  demon- 
strations of  affection  are  shown  him.  The  family 
regulations  in  China  are  such  that  so  soon  as  a 
child  begins  to  understand,  he  is  not  only  taught 
to  obey,  but  also  loses  his  freedom  of  action ;  nor 
does  he  fully  recover  it  till  he  is  old  and  past  the 
brief  season  of  youthful  enjoyment. 

Every  person  in  China  is  in  strict  subjection  to 
somebody.  The  child  is  subject  to  his  parents  or 
guardian.  They,  in  turn,  are  subject  to  their  pa- 
rents, who  are  liable  to  be  called  to  account  by  the 
elders  of  the  clan.  The  magistrate  is  considered 
the  father  of  the  people  he  rules  over ;  and  the 
Emperor  stands  in  the  same  relation  to  his  sub- 
*7 


l8  WHEN    I    WAS    A    BOY    IN    CHINA. 

jects  as  the  father  to  his  children.  Women  are 
subject  to  their  fathers  or  husbands.  All  are  sub- 
ject to  the  national  laws. 

Accordingly  obedience  and  respect,  rather  than 
affection,  are  required  of  the  Chinese  child.  His 
home-life,  therefore,  is  constrained,  sober  and  dull. 
The  boy  attains  to  the  ideal  character  only  when 
he  habitually  checks  his  affectionate  impulses,  sup- 
presses his  emotions  and  is  uniformly  respectful 
to  his  superiors  and  uniformly  dignified  with  his 
inferiors.  Therefore  the  child  is  early  taught  to 
walk  respectfully  behind  his  superiors,  to  sit  only 
when  he  is  bidden,  to  speak  only  when  questions 
are  asked  him,  and  to  salute  his  superiors  by  the 
correct  designations.  It  would  be  the  height  of  im- 
propriety for  him  to  mention  his  father's  name,  or 
call  his  uncles  and  elder  brothers  by  their  names. 
(Children  call  their  father  "  A-M,"  or  «  A-ye? 
which  corresponds  to  papa  in  English.  Mamma 
in  Chinese  is  "  A-ma"  The  syllable  A  is  prefixed 
for  the  sake  of  euphony  or  convenient  pronuncia- 
tion. In  the  same  way,  we  say,  "  A-suk  "  for  uncle, 
"A-ko"  for  elder  brother,  "  A-ka  "  elder  sister.  Cous- 


THE   HOUSE   AND   HOUSEHOLD.  19 

ins  on  one's  father's  side  are  reckoned  as  brothers.) 
He  must  rise  from  his  seat  when  they  approach 
him.  If  he  is  taken  to  task  for  anything  he  has 
done,  he  must  never  contradict,  never  seek  to  ex- 
plain. Such  an  offence  is  not  easily  forgiven  and 
double  punishment  is  likely  to  immediately  over- 
take the  offender.  How  often  have  I  rued  my 
imprudence  in  contradicting  my  parents,  uncles  or 
teachers!  Often  I  was  but  simply  trying  to  give 
the  explanation  of  seemingly  bad  conduct.  But 
the  Chinese  take  no  explanations  from  those  sub- 
ject to  them.  It  is  better  for  an  accused  son, 
pupil,  or  servant  to  suffer  punishment  in  silence 
although  he  may  be  conscious  of  no  wrong  doing. 
This  seems  very  unreasonable ;  and,  in  fact,  it  does 
foster  sullenness  and  a  spirit  of  rebellion  which 
fear  alone  keeps  under.  But  the  Chinese  deem 
this  method  absolutely  necessary  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  authority.  In  every  household  the  rattan 
stick  is  always  ready  to  the  hand  of  the  majestic 
wrath  of  outraged  family  law.  It  is  not  my  inten- 
tion to  represent  the  Chinese  as  naturally  cruel. 
They  are  not.  They  simply  maintain  family  dis- 


20  WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN    CHINA. 

cipline  by  customs  handed  down  from  one  gener- 
ation to  another.  Fathers  and  teachers  have  un- 
dergone the  same  training.  The  customs  of  their 
ancestors  enjoin  it,  the  teachings  of  Confucius 
prescribe  it,  and  the  laws  of  the  empire  arm  it  with 
authority. 

Indeed,  among  the  lower  and  less  educated 
classes,  we  find  family  discipline  less  strict  than 
among  the  higher  orders  of  our  people.  I  hap- 
pened to  be  born  into  the  higher  middle  condition 
of  life.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  caste  in  China, 
in  the  sense  that  caste  exists  in  India.  In  China, 
wealth,  and  literary  and  official  honors  ennoble  a 
family  and  can  lift  it  from  a  lower  to  a  higher  plane. 
The  regulations  and  government  of  my  family  were 
as  rigorous  as  possible.  I  lived  the  years  of  my 
childhood  in  a  shrinking  condition  of  mind.  Like 
all  youngsters,  I  wanted  to  shout,  jump,  run  about, 
show  my  resentments,  and  my  affections,  give  my 
animal  spirits  and  affectionate  impulses  full  play. 
But  like  a  colt  in  training  for  the  harness  I  was 
checked  and  curbed,  my  tongue  was  bridled,  and 
my  feet  clogged,  by  fear  of  my  elders.  My  father 


THE   HOUSE   AND    HOUSEHOLD.  21 

was  a  stern  man  as  was  his  father  before  him.  I 
remember  him  vividly  by  the  beatings  I  got  from 
him. 

Yet  he  was  truly  good  and  kind. 

Though  the  times  when  I  required  punishment 
were  comparatively  rare,  I  remember  a  constant 
sense  of  dread  lest  I  should  do  something  out  of 
the  way  of  a  well-bred  Chinese  lad.  The  bamboo 
rod  hung  over  my  head  like  the  sword  of  Damocles. 
My  mother  (who  is  still  living)  saved  me  from  its 
blows  many  a  time  by  giving  me  timely  warning  or 
by  keeping  my  misdemeanors  from  my  father's 
knowledge.  But  she  was  not  so  foolishly  indul- 
gent as  to  spare  me  when  I  truly  deserved  punish- 
ment. 

Our  immediate  family  consisted  of  my  parents, 
a  brother  four  years  older  than  I,  one  two  years 
younger,  and  myself.  I  had  two  sisters  who  had 
died  before  my  birth ;  by  the  course  of  nature,  let 
me  add,  for  the  horrible  practice  of  female  infanti- 
cide was  in  our  part  of  the  empire  only  heard  of 
in  stories,  and  not  without  a  shudder. 

I  have  previously  said  we  occupied  a  part  of  my 


22 


WHEN    I   WAS   A   BOY   IN    CHINA. 


cL-L. 


i 


grandfather's  house.     The  building  had  only  one 
floor.     The  accompanying  plan  describes  it  : 

"A  "  stands  for  those 
spaces  over  which  the 
roof  was  open  to  the 
sky,  and  which  corre- 
sponded  to  the  complu- 
vium  in  the  dwellings 
of  the  Romans.  There 
were  five  of  them  in 
our  house.  Through 
them  came  air,  wind 


4*zt* 


.f 


PLAN  OF  A   CHINESE   HOUSE. 

and   rain.      You   may 

easily  conjecture  that  such  openings  in  Chinese 
houses  must  be  favorite  entrances  and  exits  for 
burglars  and  thieves.  At  night  there  seems  to  be 
no  protection  against  such  gentry  except  the  wake- 
fulness  and  bravery  of  watchmen,  who,  by  striking 
the  hour  of  night  on  a  piece  of  bamboo  in  going 
the  rounds,  only  warn  the  burglars  to  keep  out  of 
sight  while  they  are  near.  The  Chinese  watchman 
serves  the  double  purpose  of  a  patrolman  and  a 
perambulating  clock;  and  although  clocks  are  in 


THE   HOUSE   AND    HOUSEHOLD.  23 

common  use,  my  countrymen  have  not  yet  em- 
ployed bells  to  toll  the  hour  for  the  whole  city. 

If  you  examine  the  plan,  you  will  see  that  there 
is  only  one  regular  entrance  to  the  house.  Hav- 
ing passed  the  door,  you  will  be  in  the  vestibule 
which  opens  on  the  large  compluvium  by  three  pairs 
of  doors,  all  of  which  are  thrown  ajar  on  grand 
occasions ;  but  ordinarily  only  a  side  pair  are  left 
open.  Having  passed  them  and  descended  by  one 
step  into  the  compluvium,  you  have  a  full  view  of 
the  audience  hall  which  is  decorated  and  used  on 
great  occasions,  as  New  Year's  days,  weddings, 
funerals,  birthday  celebrations,  or  for  extraordinary 
events,  as  the  reception  of  distinguished  guests,  etc. 
On  either  hand  are  the  two  wings,  library,  and  men's 
living  rooms.  The  only  passage  to  the  women's 
apartments  is  through  this  audience  hall.  On 
that  side  also  are  three  pairs  of  doors,  two  of  which 
are  usually  closed,  only  the  pair  on  the  extreme 
right  being  in  daily  use.  A  screen  stands  before 
this  entrance ;  for  the  worst  thing  that  can  happen 
is  to  have  male  visitors  look  into  the  women's  apart- 
ments and  see  the  female  members  of  the  family. 


24  WHEN   I    WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

My  grandmother  occupied  the  chamber  back  of 
the  ladies'  parlor,  for  that  is  usually  considered  the 
best  room  on  account  of  its  central  location.  The 
left  wing  back  was  occupied  by  an  uncle  and  his 
family.  Behind  this  section  of  the  house  was  the 
kitchen  and  the  chambers  for  servants  and  daugh- 
ters of  the  house.  The  garden  had  a  well,  from 
which  the  women  drew  water.  I  trust  I  impress 
upon  you  that  the  house  was  divided  into  two  por- 
tions ;  the  front  belonging  to  the  men  and  the  rear 
to  the  women.  My  grandfather's  rule  was  that  no 
lady  of  the  family  should  pass  the  boundary  line 
except  on  "  occasions." 

I  make  no  mention  of  cellars  because  there  were 
none.  The  house-walls  were  of  slate-colored  brick, 
the  roof  of  tiles  laid  over  slats  and  beams  increas- 
ing in  height  from  the  vestibule  to  the  garden.  The 
rooms  were  lofty  and  airy,  and  but  for  storms  and 
the  winter's  wind  would  have  been  comfortable. 

As  I  have  before  said,  the  house  was  plainly  fur- 
nished. The  audience  hall  was  the  festival  room. 
A  long  table  in  the  centre,  with  interesting  vases 
and  curios,  stood  behind  a  square  one  of  mahog- 


THE    HOUSE   AND   HOUSEHOLD.  25 

any.  They  were  flanked  by  two  rows  of  chairs  of 
the  same  material,  with  tea-poys  between  that 
served  to  hold  the  tea-cups  of  guests.  A  couple  of 
easy  folding-chairs  lined  with  leather,  stood  in  front. 
On  the  walls  were  water-color  paintings  and  scrolls. 


CHAPTER    III. 

CHINESE   COOKERY. 

THE  housekeeping  was  likewise  simple.  My 
grandmother  was  the  head  of  the  family  dur- 
ing her  husband's  absence,  and  she  had  always  the 
management  of  the  minor  affairs  of  the  entire  estab- 
lishment. She  it  was  who  assigned  the  duties  and 
superintended  the  work  of  the  servants,  and  the 
employments  of  the  daughters,  and  the  daughters- 
in-law.  We  had  a  hired  cook,  several  maid-ser- 
vants and  a  man-servant,  so  that  there  was  never 
a  need  that  the  ladies  of  our  family  should  soil 
their  dainty  hands  or  weary  their  delicate  feet.  My 
grandmother,  however,  had  her  own  ideas  about 
work,  and  used  to  arrange  that  her  daughters  should 
not  be  idle  or  ignorant. 

The  hour  for  rising  was  between  six  and  seven  A.  M. 

The  children  of  the  household  had  to  go  to  school 
26 


CHINESE   COOKERY.  27 

at  seven  ;   and  the  men  had  business  to  attend  to. 

As  soon  as  day  dawned,  the  servants  were  stir- 
ring. They  swept  the  brick  floors,  and  having 
heated  some  water,  they  would  go  to  wake  their 
respective  mistresses,  placing  the  warmed  water 
before  them  for  the  morning  toilet.  As  each 
emerged  from  his  or  her  slumber,  greetings  were 
scrupulously  exchanged.  We  Chinese  say  "  Early 
morning!"  instead  of  "Good  morning!"  The 
servants  were  then  sent  out  to  market  to  buy  the 
materials  for  breakfast.  Let  us  follow  them. 

After  winding  in  and  out  through  narrow  streets 
flanked  with  blank  walls,  the  monotony  broken 
only  by  doorways,  we  come  to  the  business  portion 
of  the  city.  We  emerge  into  a  scene  of  life  and 
animation.  Men  and  servant-girls  are  either  on 
their  way  to  market  or  returning,  carrying  wicker 
baskets  of  eels,  fish,  pork,  vegetables.  Here  are 
incense-shops,  butcher-shops  and  grocery-stores, 
fish-stalls  and  vegetable-stands.  The  stone  pave- 
ment is  slippery  with  mud.  The  din  is  deafening. 
The  present  stage  in  the  development  of  trade  in 
China  does  not  admit  of  one  price  for  one's  wares. 


28  WHEN    I   WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

The  seller  and  buyer  must  wrangle  for  minutes 
over  a  few  mills.  Time  is  of  no  consideration.  A 
man  will  go  through  and  through  the  market,  lis- 
tening to  what  others  are  giving,  pricing  everything 
for  himself,  and  at  the  same  time  beating  the  price 
down  so  low  that  the  hawker  will  not  agree  to  sell. 
Our  servants  having,  after  much  haggling,  pro- 
cured the  wherewithal  for  breakfast,  let  us  return 
to  our  kitchen  and  see  the  meal  prepared.  Your 
first  exclamation  is  sure  to  be,  "  How  smoky  it  is  ! 
Oh,  stifling !  Let  us  come  away ! "  Well,  this 
kitchen  certainly  is  not  so  cosey  and  neat  as  Ameri- 
can kitchens  usually  are.  The  smoke  does  not  go 
out  by  chimney,  but  through  the  skylight  and 
wherever  it  finds  an  outlet.  The  walls  are  black 
with  the  accumulation  of  years  of  soot.  That  large 
stove  in  the  corner  is  built  of  brick.  The  smoke 
issues  through  an  aperture  in  the  back  and  curls 
upward  through  the  opening  into  the  clear  sky.  On 
the  top  of  this  stove  is  a  large  round  iron  spider 
about  three  feet  in  diameter.  In  this  rice  is  cook- 
ing. Straw  being  cheaper,  is  burnt  in  this  stove  in- 
stead of  wood,  and  some  one  is  required  to  feed  the 


CHINESE   COOKERY.  29 

fire  constantly.  Turning  to  the  left,  we  see  little 
clay  stoves,  on  which  food  is  frying  in  spiders,  or 
boiling  in  earthen  pots,  over  a  wood  fire.  Grand- 
mother and  her  daughters  are  superintending  the 
various  preparations.  Vegetables  are  cut  into  bits 
and  boiled  with  pork  or  mutton,  making  a  soup. 
Greens  are  boiling.  Fish  is  steaming,  frying,  or 
stewing  with  or  without  vegetable.  Meat  is  cut 
fine  ;  when  the  spider  becomes  heated  lard  is  put 
in  it,  then  pieces  of  onion,  then  the  shred  meat,  and 
all  is  stirred  till  well  embrowned;  then  turnips, 
potatoes,  and  sometimes  other  vegetables  are  added 
and,  after  boiling  water  is  poured  in,  the  whole 
is  left  to  simmer  and  stew.  All  food,  we  observe, 
is  cut  in  pieces  before  being  cooked,  or  else  before 
serving.  For  no  knives,  no  forks,  are  used. 

At  ten  A.  M.  the  tables  are  set ;  those  for  men 
either  in  the  wings,  or  in  their  rooms ;  those  for 
the  women  in  their  common  sitting-room  or  parlor. 
Each  table  will  seat  eight  persons.  No  table  linen 
is  used.  Chop-sticks  and  spoons  are  placed  before 
each  place.  The  food  is  brought  in  large  bowls  or 
plates.  Rice  is  carried  to  the  table  in  a  wooden 


30  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN    CHINA. 

pail  or  wicker  basket,  from  which  it  is  served  in 
small  bowls.  The  servants  summon  the  inmates 
to  breakfast.  The  younger  ones  do  not  presume 
to  sit  till  their  elders  are  seated ;  then  after  making 
a  show  of  asking  permission  to  eat,  when  the  elders 
gravely  nod  assent,  the  breakfast  begins.  Soup  is 
taken  first;  then  each  person,  holding  the  chop- 
sticks in  the  right  hand  and  the  bowl  of  rice  in  the 
left,  lifts  his  food  to  his  mouth,  pushes  the  lumps 
in  with  the  sticks,  alternating  this  motion  with 
picking  meat,  fish  or  vegetables  from  the  dishes 
which  are  common  to  all.  One  must  take  only 
from  that  side  of  the  plate  which  is  nearest  to  him, 
however.  It  is  a  breach  of  etiquette  to  reach  over 
to  the  opposite  side.  When  one  finishes,  he  bids 
the  rest  to  "  eat  leisurely,"  which  is  our  mode  of 
saying,  "  Excuse  me  ! "  The  Chinese  invariably 
wash  their  hands  and  faces  after  every  meal. 

Tea  is  drank  about  the  same  time.  It  is  taken 
without  milk  or  sugar.  Coffee  is  not  common  in 
China,  and  we  are  not  accustomed  to  drink  cold 
water.  Tea  is  the  national  beverage  and  is  taken  to 
assuage  thirst  at  all  times  and  occasions  as  water  is 


CHINESE  COOKERY.  31 

in  America.  At  noon  a  lunch  of  cakes  or  pastry 
may  be  served.  The  majority  of  people  are  satis- 
fied with  two  meals  a  day.  Supper,  or  dinner,  is 
served  at  five  P.  M. 

In  the  interval  between  the  two  meals,  the  ladies 
of  our  family  sewed,  spun  flax,  embroidered  or 
received  company,  that  is,  their  lady  friends  who 
come  in  sedan-chairs,  some  to  make  short  visits,  some 
to  spend  the  day.  Guests  were  regaled  at  noon 
with  confections  and  pastry,  but  tea  was  always 
presented  to  a  guest  soon  after  arrival.  It  would 
have  been  uncourteous  to  omit  it.  In  the  evening, 
after  the  lamps  were  lighted,  the  ladies,  young  and 
old, would  sit  down  to  a  game  of  dominoes,  tell  sto- 
ries, or  gossip. 

A  peculiar  feature  in  Chinese  domestic  arrange- 
ments is  that  when  sons  are  married  they  continue 
to  live  with  their  parents,  while  daughters,  when 
married,  are  expected  to  live  with  their  husband's 
parents.  Such  an  arrangement  often  causes  a  deal 
of  trouble,  and  most  of  the  domestic  infelicity  in 
Chinese  home-life  is  ascribed  to  it.  But  the  cus- 
tom has  been  handed  down  from  time  immemorial, 


32  WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN    CHINA. 

each  succeeding  generation  being  educated  for  it 
It  sometimes  happens  that  the  mother-in-law  and 
the  daughter-in-law  are  suited  to  each  other  and 
live  pleasantly  together;  but  this  presumes  that 
both  entertain  exalted  views  of  duty  and  are 
blessed  with  forbearing  natures  and  yielding  dispo- 
sitions. The  Chinese  say  that  all  depends  on  the 
son  and  husband ;  if  he  be  dutiful  to  his  parents 
and  strict  in  family  discipline,  he  can  prevent  do- 
mestic broils  ;  if  he  only  shut  his  ear  against  the 
complaints  of  his  wife,  peace  will  be  preserved. 
But  the  son  and  husband  is  apt  to  lean  to  one  side 
or  the  other,  so  either  harbors  resentment  towards 
his  mother  or  acts  unjustly  towards  his  wife.  The 
father  usually  steers  clear  of  the  trouble,  though 
he  sometimes  acts  as  peacemaker.  Then  again 
if  the  mother-in-law  gets  along  well  with  one  of  her 
daughters-in-law,  it  is  not  certain  that  she  can  with 
the  rest,  or  that  the  latter  can  get  along  peacefully 
with  one  another. 

"  Every  family  has  a  skeleton  in  the  closet,"  it 
is  said  here  in  America.  It  is  no  less  true  of  Chi- 
nese families. 


CHINESE   COOKERY.  33 

My  grandmother's  was  a  character  that  inspired 
respect;  so  she  had  little  trouble  in  the  manage- 
ment of  her  large  family.  She  had  administra- 
tive talent  of  a  high  order,  and  therefore  a  fair 
share  of  household  happiness  fell  to  our  lot. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

GAMES    A*D    PASTIMES. 

THE  active  sports  of  Chinese  boys  are  few. 
There  are  hardly  any  sports,  so-called,  that 
develop  the  muscles  and  render  a  lad  graceful  and 
agile.  The  Chinese  boy  at  sixteen  is  as  grave  and 
staid  as  an  American  grandfather ;  and  if  he  hap- 
pens to  be  married  soon  after,  he  throws  aside  most 
games  as  being  childish.  At  the  best,  he  has  noth- 
ing corresponding  to  base-ball,  foot-ball,  cricket, 
bicycle-riding,  skating,  sliding,  or  tennis.  Nor  is 
he  fond  of  exerting  himself.  He  would  rather  sit 
for  hours  talking  and  joking  than  waste  time  in  run- 
ning or  jumping.  He  thinks  it  work  if  his  play 
entails  much  perspiration.  His  elders,  too,  frown 
upon  boisterous  games.  They  approve  quiet,  medi- 
tative lads  who  are  given  to  study. 

But  you  must  not  suppose  that  the  Chinese  boy 
34 


GAMES    AND    PASTIMES.  35 

never  plays  at  all.  In  spite  of  many  obstacles,  he 
proves  that  he  is  a  boy  still,  and  I  will  describe  the 
outdoor  amusements  in  which  he  does  indulge. 

Kite-flying  is  a  national  recreation.  Young  and 
old  take  part  in  it  and  it  is  not  unusual  to  see  a 
gray-haired  man  enjoying  it  in  company  with  a  ten- 
year-old  youngster.  Kites  are  of  all  sizes.  I  have 
seen  kites  that  were  six  or  seven  feet  from  wing  to 
wing.  The  frame  is  made  of  bamboo  slips  which 
can  be  easily  bent.  .Over  this  is  pasted  very  stout 
rice-paper,  upon  which  strong  figures  are  painted  — 
sometimes  the  face  of  a  man,  sometimes  a  bird. 
On  the  larger  kites  a  bow  is  fastened  at  the  top, 
with  a  reed  instead  of  a  string,  and  when  the  wind 
blows  upon  this  reed,  a  melodious  sound  will  be 
heard  through  the  air,  that  greatly  delights  every- 
body; it  seems  to  the  spectators  a  mysterious 
voice  from  a  different  sphere. 

Kite-flying  in  America  can  be  much  improved. 
Kites  should  be  constructed  of  the  Chinese  shape. 

The  rib  that  runs  through  both  wings  should 
bulge  out  so  that  the  paper  on  both  sides  may  cave 
in.  This  is  for  the  purpose  of  catching  and  retain- 


WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 


ing  the  wind  as  well  as  of  steadying  the  kite.    To 
a  kite  of  this  shape  a  tail  is  needless. 

To  fly  such  a  kite,  the  cord  must  be  very  strong, 

and  often  it  re- 
quires two  or 
three  men  to 
hold  it.  When 
it  gets  among 
the  clouds,  and 
the  flyer's  en- 
thusiasm is  at 
its  boiling-point, 
a  paper  butter- 
fly, beautifully 
colored,  is  fas- 
tened  on  the 
cord  and  the  wind  sends  it  up  with  a  whizzing 
sound  to  the  kite  itself.  But  when  it  touches  the 
kite,  the  butterfly's  wings  come  together,  and  down 
it  returns,  by  its  own  weight,  bringing  a  message 
from  the  skies,  and  its  graceful  approach  is  watched 
breathlessly. 

The  ninth  day  of  the  ninth  month,  which  comes 


FRAME  OF  A  CHINESE    KITE. 


GAMES    AND    PASTIMES.  37 

in  October,  is  "  Kites'  Day."  On  that  day  it  is  the 
fashion  to  go  up  high  hills  and  hold  communion 
with  heavenly  zephyrs.  Such  a  scene  is  inspiring. 
Men  and  boys,  of  all  ranks,  sizes  and  ages,  are 
seen  with  cords  in  their  hands,  pulling,  yanking  and 
jerking,  or  letting  loose,  all  sorts  of  agile  rice-paper 
monsters  in  the  azure  sky.  The  fun  consists  in 
making  the  kites  fight  —  in  entangling  them  and 
cutting  one  another's  strings  by  sudden  jerks. 

There  is  a  story  to  account  for  the  origin  of  the 
Kites'  Day.  Back  in  the  world's  history,  when 
Time  was  yet  a  boy,  a  man,  while  working  in  the 
field,  was  told  by  a  passing  stranger  with  an  august 
mien,  that  a  terrible  plague  was  about  to  visit  his 
house  on  the  ninth  day  of  the  ninth  month,  and 
that  the  only  way  to  escape  was  to  hie  to  a  high  hill 
near  by.  After  giving  this  warning,  the  stranger 
disappeared  mysteriously.  This  man,  who  was,  by 
the  way,  a  good  man,  went  home,  and  getting  his 
whole  family  together  before  the  fatal  day  arrived, 
set  out  with  them  to  the  hill  designated  and  re- 
mained there  all  day.  To  while  away  the  time 
probably,  his  children  flew  their  kites.  Hence  the 


38  WHEN   1   WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

custom.  After  sunset,  they  went  home  and  found 
that  all  their  cattle,  chickens  and  ducks  had  died. 
This  proved  that  they  themselves  had  been  saved 
by  the  intervention  of  some  deity.  Ever  since, 
people  have  made  the  day  a  national  holiday. 

Kicking  the  shuttlecock  is  a  favorite  outdoor 
amusement  with  both  boys  and  gentlemen.  The 
shuttlecock  consists  of  a  bunch  of  feathers  stuck  in 
small,  round  pieces  of  leather,  or  pasteboard,  and 
tied  together  by  a  string.  The  game  is  to  kick  it 
when  it  is  served  to  you  and  not  allow  it  to  drop 
on  the  ground.  When  one  muffs,  he  has  to  serve 
some  one  else.  From  two  to  six  persons  can  play. 
Skilful  players  will  keep  the  shuttlecock  above 
ground  for  some  time.  We  also  have  something 
which  is  a  feeble  apology  for  the  manly  sport  of 
base-ball.  A  piece  of  snake-skin  is  wound  around 
with  yarn  till  it  attains  the  size  of  a  billiard  ball. 
Boys  in  China  toss  it,  or  make  it  bound,  as  Ameri- 
can boys  do  their  rubber  balls. 

Penny-tossing,  or  rolling,  carries  out  the  idea  of 
marbles.  But  it  is  not  considered  a  nice  game,  and 
only  bad  boys  indulge  in  it.  Swimming  is  not  pop- 


GAMES    AND    PASTIMES.  39 

ular,  although  many  Chinese  boys  learn  to  swim. 

Fishing  means  work  with  the  Chinese.  A  man, 
or  boy,  goes  a-fishing  simply  for  the  fish,  and  not 
for  the  fun ;  and  I  am  of  the  opinion  that  my 
countrymen  are  right. 

Of  indoor  games  and  pastimes  there  is  only  a 
small  list.  Since  young  ladies  and  gentlemen  are 
not  allowed,  in  China,  to  enjoy  one  another's 
society,  dancing  is,  of  course,  out  of  the  question. 
A  Chinese  gentleman  would  consider  it  foolishness 
and  an  insensate  waste  of  time  to  hop  about  and 
twirl  around  for  a  whole  night.  Amusements  re- 
quiring so  much  exertion  are  not  to  his  taste  ;  and 
as  for  throwing  his  arm  around  a  girl's  waist  in 
the  whirl  of  the  waltz,  a  Chinese  gentleman  would 
not  permit  himself  such  an  indecorum.  Accord- 
ingly, gentlemen's  indoor  pastimes  are  cricket-fight- 
ing and  quail-fighting. 

Cricket-fighting  is  a  sort  of  passion,  or  craze, 
with  some  Chinese.  In  the  cricket  season,  men 
and  boys  hunt  for  them  by  the  wayside,  or  among 
thickets  on  the  mountains.  When  caught  they  are 
fed  and  afterwards  tested  as  to  their  fighting  quali- 


40  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

ties.    A  good  fighter  will  fetch  quite  a  large  sum. 

Dominoes  is  a  game  played  by  men  and  women  as 
well  as  children.  It  is  different  from  the  American 
game,  being  more  like  the  card  game  of  whist. 

Guessing  Pennies  always  furnishes  much  amuse- 
ment to  little  boys  and  girls.  Chinese  coins  are 
made  of  brass  and  copper,  with  a  square  hole  in 
the  middle  for  convenience  in  carrying.  On  one 
side  is  a  legend  in  Chinese  giving  the  name  of  the 
emperor's  reign  and  the  words  "  Tung-pao"  i.  e., 
currency.  The  game  is  to  guess  the  name  of  the 
reign,  when  the  coin  is  turned  upside  down.  An- 
other game  is  played  around  fruit-stand ;  it  is  to 
guess  the  number  of  seeds  in  an  orange.  The  loser 
pays  for  the  orange  while  the  winner  eats  it. 

There  are  not  many  games  in  which  boys  and 
girls  play  together.  If  they  do  play  together  it  is 
only  while  they  are  children,  under  ten  or  twelve. 
Growing-up  girls  will  have  nothing  whatever  to  do 
with  boys,  though  Chinese  boys  and  girls  are  very 
sociable,  each  with  friends  of  their  own  sex. 


CHAPTER  V. 

GIRLS   OF   MY  ACQUAINTANCE. 

I  STILL  continually  find  false  ideas  in  America 
concerning  Chinese  customs,  manners,  and 
institutions.  Small  blame  to  the  people  at  large, 
who  have  no  means  of  learning  the  truth  except 
through  newspapers  or  accounts  of  travellers  who 
do  not  understand  what  they  see  in  passing  through 
our  country.  From  the  time  of  Sir  John  Mande- 
ville,  travellers  (with  a  few  noble  exceptions)  have 
vied  with  each  other  in  relating  the  most  wonder- 
ful stories  about  our  ancient  empire.  Accordingly, 
what  I  tell  in  this  series  of  articles  about  Chinese 
customs,  manners  and  institutions  may  often  con- 
tradict general  belief. 

There  is  far  less  of  truth  told  about  the  "fair 
section "  of  the  Chinese  people  than  of  the 
sterner  sex,  because  far  less  is  known.  What  I  my- 


42  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY    IN    CHINA. 

self  propose  to  tell  is  chiefly  derived  from  daily 
observation  of  the  female  members  of  my  family  and 
those  of  my  kindred.  Very  distant  relatives  are 
recognized  in  China ;  a  man  prides  himself  upon 
the  large  number  of  his  connections  as  well  as  upon 
the  influence  his  family  exert  in  the  community  on 
account  of  wealth  or  position.  A  "poor relation" 
there  is  treated  with  much  more  consideration  and 
affection  than  in  this  country.  Generosity  towards 
that  class  of  unfortunates  is  so  common,  and  its 
practice  is  so  strenuously  insisted  upon,  in  the  moral 
code  of  the  Chinese,  that  it  almost  ceases  to  be  an 
individual  virtue  —  it  is  a  national  virtue. 

Of  the  numerous  cousins,  aunts  and  other  fair 
relatives  that  fell  to  my  earthly  lot  several  lived  in 
the  same  house  with  us,  under  the  superintendence 
of  my  grandmother,  as  I  have  before  said ;  there 
were  two  aunts  who  were  then  too  young  to  marry, 
two  aunts  by  marriage,  and  three  young  cousins 
in  the  house.  Then  on  the  same  street  dwelt  about 
thirty  or  forty  families,  all  related  to  us  by  blood, 
whose  female  members  it  was  my  privilege,  as  a 
relative  and  as  a  youngster,  to  see  often.  I  assure 


GIRLS  OF   MY   ACQUAINTANCE.  43 

you  they  comprised  among  them  girls  of  all  sorts  of 
tempers  and  characters.  The  gentle,  refined  and 
modest  stood  side  by  side  with  the  rough,  uncul- 
tured and  forward.  There  were  good-looking  ones, 
and  there  were  homely  ones. 

Let  me  add  that  these  girls  had  not  been  "  killed 
during  their  infancy."  I  am  indignant  that  there 
should  be  a  popular  belief  in  America  that  Chinese 
girls  at  their  birth  are  generally  put  to  death  be- 
cause they  are  not  wanted  by  their  parents.  Noth- 
ing can  be  further  from  the  truth.  In  a  country 
like  China,  where  women  do  not  appear  in  public 
life,  it  must  follow  that  sons  are  more  to  be  desired, 
for  the  very  good  reasons  that  family  honor  and 
glory  depend  on  them  and  ancestral  worship  neces- 
sitates either  the  birth  or  adoption  of  sons  to  per- 
petuate it.  I  venture  to  say  that  in  proportion  to 
population  and  distribution  of  wealth  that  infanti- 
cide is  as  rare  in  China  as  it  is  in  this  country. 
Extremely  poor  people,  finding  it  hard  to  keep  even 
themselves  alive,  often  prefer  to  "make  way"  with 
their  babies  rather  than  see  them  slowly  starve  to 
death.  With  them,  girl-babies  are  more  often  sac- 


44  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

rificed  because  boys  are  readily  adopted  by  rich 
and  childless  persons,  while,  the  female  infants 
rarely  can  be  thus  provided  for.  But  let  it  be  un- 
derstood that  there  are  established  in  every  good- 
sized  town  infant  hospitals  in  which  these  waifs  are 
kept  and  brought  up  with  care  by  means  of  funds 
furnished  by  good  people.  The  same  ceremonies 
of  christening  are  observed  with  girl  babies,  and 
though  relatives  may  growl,  they  nevertheless  bring 
the  customary  presents  of  cloth,  jewelry  and  pigs' 
feet. 

In  spite  of  the  restraint  all  Chinese  children  are 
subject  to,  we  little  boys  and  girls  used  to  have 
good  times  together.  Among  the  boys  were  two 
brothers  of  mine  and  a  whole  troop  of  cousins  of 
whom  five  were  about  my  age.  We  used  to  play 
cat's-cradle,  puss-in-the-corner,  jack-straws  and 
jack-stones,  the  girls  (all  the  way  from  four  to  eight 
years  of  age)  taking  as  much  interest  in  the  games 
as  we  did.  Of  course  at  any  time  when  the  gen- 
tlemen of  the  family  were  present,  we  used  to  sit 
as  quiet  as  mice  and  as  demure  as  monks  and  nuns. 

In  those  games  which  depend  on  dexterity  and 


GIRLS   OF    MY   ACQUAINTANCE.  45 

activity,  we  boys  were  winners ;  but  when  it  came 
to  games  demanding  skill,  patience,  quick  wit  and 
delicacy  of  touch,  we  were  distanced  by  the  girls. 

Many  a  quarrel  did  we  have  as  points  of  dispute 
came  up ;  and  often  one  of  our  set  would  not  speak 
to  another,  or  would  even  cut  the  whole  of  us  for 
days  together  on  account  of  some  unfair  play. 
Those  little  tiffs  seemed  to  be  of  momentous  im- 
portance then.  But  the  boy  whose  heart  swells 
with  indignation  at  that  which  offends  his  sense  of 
justice  is  likely  to  grow  up  a  true  man  after  all. 

But  our  chief  amusement  and  delight  was  to 
hear  stories;  especially  those  about  fairies  and 
ghosts.  Oh !  the  blood-curdling  stories  that  we 
were  privileged  to  hear.  They  were  enough  to  set 
anybody's  teeth  a-chattering  and  to  stand  his  hair 
on  end.  They  were  always  told  in  a  low,  sepul- 
chral tone  of  voice,  and  the  lamps  were  turned 
down,  which  very  much  heightened  the  artistic 
effect.  We  were  also  entertained  with  healthful 
anecdotes,  such  as  scraps  of  history  or  biographical 
sketches  of  China's  great  men  and  famous  women. 
But  when  we  coaxed  "  real  hard,"  we  could  gener- 


46  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

ally  get  some  one  to  tell  us  stories  of  goblins,  imps 
that  haunted  the  forests,  spectres  that  dwelt  in  old 
coffins,  and  witches  and  fairies  that  were  good  to 
those  who  pleased  them.  After  listening  to  a  glow- 
ing account  of  their  antics  and  deeds,  good  or 
mischievous,  it  was  useless  to  attempt  making  me 
go  to  bed  alone  or  without  a  light.  Even  when 
some  one  accompanied  me  with  a  light,  I  never 
felt  safe  until  I  had  covered  my  head  with  the  bed- 
clothes. That  superstitious  dread  haunts  me  yet, 
especially  when  walking  alone  in  the  dark.  I  think 
it  is  impossible  that  I  shall  ever  outgrow  it. 

When  between  six  and  eight  years  of  age,  my 
girl-cousins  took  that  step  which  affected  all  their 
after-lives.  At  that  age  all  well-born  Chinese  misses 
have  their  feet  bound.  It  is  a  fashion  they  are  obliged 
to  follow.  If  they  should  not,  they  would  not  be 
recognized  as  ladies  when  they  grow  up,  and  they 
would  become  a  disgrace  to  their  families.  Chinese 
aristocrats  are  as  proud  and  jealous  of  their  good 
name  as  the  bluest-blooded  of  European  nobles. 
Anything  that  lowers  them  in  the  eyes  of  their 
neighbors  is  carefully  guarded  against.  Accord- 


GIRLS   OF    MY   ACQUAINTANCE.  47 

ingly,  only  the  daughters  of  poor  and  humble  par- 
ents are  permitted  by  society  to  retain  the  feet  as 
nature  bestowed  them. 

The  process  of  binding  is  a  gradual  one.  From 
first  to  last,  bands  are  wound  around  the  tender 
feet  to  prevent  their  growth ;  but  at  first  shoes  are 
worn  nearly  as  large  as  the  natural  size  ;  in  a  year 
or  so  the  shoes  will  have  to  be  smaller,  and  as  the 
feet  decrease  in  size  till  they  attain  to  three  or  two 
and  a  half  inches  in  length,  so  shoes  are  made  to 
fit  the  lessened  foot.  But  oh !  the  suffering  that 
goes  with  it.  This  never  has  been  exaggerated  in 
any  account.  Many  a  time  have  I  heard  my  cou- 
sins groan  with  pain  as  the  tortures  of  binding  were 
being  undergone.  Yet,  strange  to  say,  those  girls 
would  not  have  had  exemption  from  the  process, 
on  any  account.  To  be  ranked  as  servants,  working 
girls  ?  Not  they.  The  Chinese  young  lady  chooses 
to  be  fashionable  even  though  she  undergo  torture 
for  several  years  and  incur  helplessness  for  life. 

Don't  imagine,  however,  that  Chinese  ladies  are 
unable  to  move.  They  can,  most  of  them,  walk 
short  distances.  But  it  is  true  that  the  spirit  is 


48  WHEN    I   WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

taken  out  of  them  by  this  species  of  suffering,  and 
that  they  are  oppressed  by  a  sense  of  physical  help- 
lessness and  dependence. 

The  work  that  little  girls  in  China  do  is  light. 
Trifling  things  about  the  cooking,  such  as  shelling 
of  peas  or  assorting  of  greens,  were  given  over  to 
my  girl-cousins.  Between  meals,  the  little  girls 
were  taught  to  sew,  embroider  and  to  spin  flax. 
They  were  never  so  happy  as  when  a  group  of  them 
sat  together  at  work ;  one  would  tell  a  story,  an- 
other would  follow  with  a  ballad,  singing  it  with 
that  peculiar  plaintive  tone  which  is  considered  a 
part  of  the  ballad's  charm.  My  cousins  were 
early  taught  to  read  and  write,  and  in  company 
with  us  boys,  until  they  were  eleven  or  twelve  ; 
then  they  were  thought  too  old  to  be  left  in  the 
society  of  boys  very  much;  especially  was  it  so  after 
some  young  strangers  came  to  our  school,  which 
was  established  in  the  men's  living  rooms. 

In  closing  this  chapter,  I  wish  to  call  attention 
to  the  fact  that  Chinese  girls  —  though  you  may 
think  they  lead  a  humdrum  sort  of  life,  though  it 
be  true  that  they  are  strangers  to  the  exciting 


GIRLS  OF   MY  ACQUAINTANCE.  49 

gayeties  enjoyed  by  American  girls  —  are  usually 
contented  and  think  their  lot  a  pleasant  one.  It 
is  the  custom,  I  am  aware,  to  represent  Chinese 
young  ladies  as  languishing  in  their  apartments 
and  contemplating  with  tearful  eyes  the  walls  that 
confine  them.  To  be  sure,  they  do  not  have  that 
excess  of  liberty  by  which  some  American  girls  are 
spoiled ;  yet  they  are  not  kept  under  lock  and 
key.  They  have  that  liberty  which  is  consistent 
with  our  ideas  of  propriety.  They  make  visits, 
they  call  on  their  neighbors,  they  go  to  theatres, 
they  see  the  sights,  they  witness  boat-races  and  do 
many  pleasant  and  social  things  besides.  But 
whatever  they  do,  there  is  always  this  limit  —  they 
are  not  permitted  the  acquaintance  of  young  men. 
And  when  they  are  married,  they  are  restricted  to 
the  society  of  their  husbands.  You  perhaps  think 
their  existence  a  failure.  They  look  upon  the  sort 
of  life  that  American  girls  lead  as  very  improper. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

SCHOOLS   AND  SCHOOL   LIFE. 

SCHOOLS  in  China  are  usually  kept  by  private 
gentlemen.  The  government  provides  for 
advanced  scholars  only.  But  since  the  one  quali- 
fication for  office  is  education,  and  the  avenue  to 
literary  distinction  and  public  honors  lies  through 
competitive  examinations,  the  encouragement  that 
the  government  extends  to  education  and  learn- 
ing can  be  estimated  only  by  that  eager  pursuit  of 
knowledge  which  is  common  to  all  classes,  and  by 
the  veneration  in  which  scholars  and  scholarship 
are  held. 

Therefore  it  is  not  strange  that  schools  are  to 
be  found  everywhere,  in  small  hamlets  as  in  large 
towns,  although  the  government  appropriates  no 
funds  for  the  establishment  of  common  schools ; 
and  although  no  such  thing  is  known  as  "  compul- 
50 


SCHOOLS   AND    SCHOOL    LIFE.  51 

sory  education,"  there  is  a  general  desire,  even 
among  the  poorest  classes,  to  give  their  children 
"a  little  schooling."  Schools  of  the  lower  grades 
never  boast  more  than  one  teacher  each.  The 
combination  system  of  a  head-master  and  several 
assistants  does  not  work  well  in  China.  The 
schoolmaster  in  China  must  be  absolute.  He  is 
monarch  of  all  he  surveys ;  in  his  sphere  there  is 
none  to  dispute  his  rights.  You  can  always  point 
him  out  among  a  thousand  by  the  scholar's  long 
gown,  by  his  stern  look,  by  his  bent  form,  by  his 
shoulders  rounded  by  assiduous  study.  He  is 
usually  near-sighted,  so  that  an  immense  pair  of 
spectacles  also  marks  him  as  a  trainer  of  the  mind. 
He  generally  is  a  gentleman  who  depends  on  his 
teaching  to  make  both  ends  meet ;  —  his  school  is 
his  own  private  enterprise  —  for  no  such  thing  ex- 
ists in  China  as  a  "  school-board  "  and  if  he  be  an 
elegant  penman,  he  increases  the  weight  of  his 
purse  by  writing  scrolls;  if  he  be  an  artist,  he 
paints  pictures  on  fans.  If  he  has  not  taken  a  de- 
gree, he  is  a  perennial  candidate  for  academic  hon- 
ors which  the  government  only  has  a  right  to  confer. 


52  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY   IN    CHINA. 

A  tuition  fee  in  China  varies  according  to  the 
ability  and  reputation  of  the  teacher,  from  two  dol- 
lars to  twenty  dollars  a  year.  It  varies  also  ac- 
cording to  the  age  and  advancement  of  the  pupil. 
The  older  he  be,  the  more  he  has  to  pay.  The 
larger  sum  I  have  named  is  paid  to  private  tutors. 
A  private  tutor  is  also  usually  invited  to  take  his 
abode  in  the  house  of  the  wealthy  pupil ;  and  he  is 
also  permitted  to  admit  a  few  outsiders.  During 
festivals,  and  on  great  occasions,  the  teacher  re- 
ceives presents  of  money,  as  well  as  of  eatables, 
from  his  pupils.  And  always  he  is  treated  with 
great  honor  by  all,  and  especially  by  the  parents 
of  the  pupils.  For  the  future  career  of  their  chil- 
dren may,  in  one  sense,  be  said  to  be  in  his 
hands. 

One  who  teaches  thirty  or  forty  boys  at  an  aver- 
age tuition  fee  of  four  dollars,  is  doing  tolerably 
well  in  China ;  for  with  the  same  amount  he  can 
buy  five  or  six  times  as  much  of  provisions  or  cloth- 
ing as  can  be  bought  in  America. 

Schools  usually  open  about  three  weeks  after 
the  New  Year's  Day,  and  continue  till  the  middle 


SCHOOLS  AND   SCHOOL   LIFE.  53 

of  the  twelfth  month  with  but  a  few  holidays 
sprinkled  in.  However,  if  the  teacher  be  a  can- 
didate for  a  literary  degree,  usually  a  vacation  of 
about  six  weeks  is  enjoyed  by  the  pupils  in  sum- 
mer. During  the  New  Year  festival,  a  month  is 
given  over  to  fun  and  relaxation.  Unlike  the  boys 
and  girls  of  America,  Chinese  pupils  have  no  Sat- 
urdays as  holidays,  no  Sundays  as  rest-days.  School 
is  in  session  daily  from  six  to  ten  A.  M.,  at  which 
time  all  go  home  to  breakfast.  At  eleven  A.  M., 
all  assemble  again.  At  one  p.  M.  a  recess  of  about 
an  hour  is  granted  to  the  pupils  to  get  lunch.  From 
two  P.  M.  to  four  is  held  the  afternoon  session. 
This  of  course  is  only  approximate,  as  no  teacher 
is  bound  to  a  fixed  regularity.  He  is  at  liberty  to 
regulate  his  hours  as  he  chooses.  At  four  P.  M. 
the  school  closes  for  the  day. 

Schools  are  held  either  in  a  private  house  or  in 
the  hall  of  a  temple.  The  ancestral  temples  which 
contain  the  tablets  of  deceased  ancestors  are  usu- 
ally selected  for  schools,  because  they  are  of  no 
other  use  and  because  they  are  more  or  less  se- 
cluded, and  are  generally  spacious.  In  a  large 


54  WHEN    I   WAS  A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

hall,  open  on  one  side  towards  a  court,  and  having 
high  ceilings  supported  by  lofty  pillars,  besides 
the  brick  walls,  you  may  see  in  the  upper  right- 
hand  corner  a  square  wooden  table,  behind  which 
is  the  wooden  chair;  this  is  the  throne  of  his 
majesty  —  the  schoolmaster.  On  this  table  are 
placed  the  writing  materials,  consisting  of  brushes, 
India  ink,  and  ink-wells  made  of  slate.  After 
pouring  a  little  water  in  one  of  these  wells,  the  cake 
of  ink  is  rubbed  in  it  until  it  reaches  a  certain 
thickness  when  the  ink  is  ready  to  be  used.  The 
brushes  are  held  as  a  painter's  brushes  are. 

In  conspicuous  view  are  the  articles  for  inflict- 
ing punishment ;  a  wooden  ruler  to  be  applied  to 
the  head  of  the  offender  and  sometimes  to  the 
hands,  also  a  rattan  stick  for  the  body.  Flogging 
with  this  stick  is  the  heaviest  punishment  allowed ; 
for  slight  offences  the  ruler  is  used  upon  the  palms, 
and  for  reciting  poorly  —  upon  the  head. 

The  room  at  large  is  occupied  by  the  tables  and 
stools  of  the  pupils,  chairs  being  reserved  for  supe- 
riors. The  pupils  sit  either  facing  the  teacher,  or 
at  right  angles  to  him.  Their  tables  are  oblong  in 


SCHOOLS   AND   SCHOOL   LIFE.  55 

form  and  if  much  used  will  show  the  carving  hab- 
its and  talents  of  their  occupants.  The  pupils  are 
all  of  one  sex  usually,  for  girls  seldom  attend  other 
schools  than  those  kept  in  the  family,  and  then 
only  up  to  eleven  or  twelve  years  of  age.  They 
are  taught  the  same  lessons  as  their  brothers. 

The  boys  range  all  the  way  from  six  or  seven, 
up  to  sixteen  or  seventeen  years  of  age,  in  an  ordi- 
nary school ;  for  there  is  no  such  thing  as  organ- 
izing them  into  classes  and  divisions;  each  one 
is  studying  for  himself.  Still  there  are  schools  in 
which  all  the  pupils  are  advanced ;  and  there  are 
others  which  have  none  but  beginners.  But  they 
are  rare. 

I  began  to  go  to  school  at  six.  I  studied  first 
the  three  primers  :  the  Trimetrical  Classic,  the  Thou- 
sand-words Classic,  and  the  Incentive  to  Study.  They 
were  in  rhyme  and  metre,  and  you  might  think 
they  were  easy  on  that  account.  But  no !  they 
were  hard.  There  being  no  alphabet  in  the  Chi- 
nese language,  each  word  had  to  be  learned  by 
itself.  At  first  all  that  was  required  of  me  was  to 
learn  the  name  of  the  character,  and  to  recognize 


56  WHEN    I    WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

it  again.  Writing  was  learned  by  copying  from  a 
form  written  by  the  teacher;  the  form  being  laid 
under  the  thin  paper  on  which  the  copying  was  to 
be  done.  The  thing  I  had  to  do  was  to  make  all 
the  strokes  exactly  as  the  teacher  had  made  them. 
It  is  a  very  tedious  operation. 

I  finished  the  three  primers  in  about  a  year,  not 
knowing  what  I  really  was  studying.  The  spoken 
language  of  China  has  outgrown  the  written ;  that 
is,  we  no  longer  speak  as  we  write.  The  difference 
is  like  that  between  the  English  of  to-day  and  that 
of  Chaucer's  time. 

I  then  took  up  the  Great  Learning,  written  by  a 
disciple  of  Confucius ;  and  then  the  Doctrine  of  the 
Mean,  by  the  grandson  of  Confucius.  These  text- 
books are  rather  hard  to  understand  sometimes, 
even  in  the  hands  of  older  folks ;  for  they  are  treat- 
ises on  learning  and  philosophy.  I  then  passed  on 
to  the  Life  and  Sayings  of  Confucius,  known  as 
the  Confucian  Analects  to  the  American  scholars. 
These  books  were  to  be  followed  by  the  Life  and 
Sayings  of  Mencius,  and  the  Five  Kings — five 
classics,  consisting  of  books  of  history,  divina- 


SCHOOLS   AND   SCHOOL   LIFE.  57 

tion,  universal  etiquette,  odes  and  the  Spring  and 
Autumn,  "  a  brief  and  abstract  chronicle  of  the 
times  "  by  Confucius. 

I  had  to  learn  all  my  lessons  by  rote ;  commit 
them  to  memory  for  recitation  the  day  following. 
We  read  from  the  top  right-hand  corner  down- 
wards, and  then  begin  at  the  top  with  the  next 
line,  and  so  on.  Moreover,  we  begin  to  read  from 
what  seems  to  you  the  end  of  the  book.  All  study- 
ing must  be  done  aloud.  The  louder  you  speak, 
or  shriek,  the  more  credit  you  get  as  a  student.  It 
is  the  only  way  by  which  Chinese  teachers  make 
sure  that  their  pupils  are  not  thinking  of  some- 
thing else,  or  are  not  playing  under  the  desks. 

Now,  let  me  take  you  into  the  school  where  I 
struggled  with  the  Chinese  written  language  for 
three  years.  Oh !  those  hard  characters  which  re- 
fused to  yield  their  meaning  to  me.  But  I  gradu- 
ally learned  to  make  and  to  recognize  their  forms 
as  well  as  their  names.  This  school  was  in  the  ances- 
tral hall  of  my  clan  and  was  like  the  one  I  have 
described.  There  were  about  a  dozen  of  us  young- 
sters placed  for  the  time  being  under  the  absolute 


58  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY    IX   CHINA. 

sway  of  an  old  gentleman  of  threescore-and-six. 
He  had  all  the  outward  marks  of  a  scholar ;  and 
in  addition,  he  was  cross-eyed,  which  fact  threw  an 
element  of  uncertainty  into  our  schemes  of  fun. 
For  we  used  to  like  to  "  get  ahead  "  of  the  old  gen- 
tleman, and  there  were  a  few  of  us  always  ready 
for  any  lark. 

It  is  six  o'clock  A.  M.  All  the  boys  are  shout- 
ing at  the  top  of  their  voices,  at  the  fullest  stretch 
of  their  lungs.  Occasionally,  one  stops  and  talks 
to  some  one  sitting  near  him.  Two  of  the  most 
careless  ones  are  guessing  pennies;  and  anon  a 
dispute  arises  as  to  which  of  the  two  disputants 
writes  a  better  hand.  Here  is  one  who  thinks  he 
knows  his  lesson  and,  having  given  his  book  to 
another,  repeats  it  for  a  trial.  All  at  once  the  talk- 
ing, the  playing,  the  shouting  ceases.  A  bent  form 
slowly  comes  up  through  the  open  court.  The 
pupils  rise  to  their  feet.  A  simultaneous  saluta- 
tion issues  from  a  dozen  pairs  of  lips.  All  cry 
out,  '•'•Lao  Sf"  (venerable  teacher)!  As  he  sits 
down,  all  follow  his  example.  There  is  no  roll- 
call.  Then  one  takes  his  book  up  to  the  teacher's 


SCHOOLS   AND   SCHOOL    LIFE.  59 

desk,  turns  his  back  to  him  and  recites.  But  see, 
he  soon  hesitates ;  the  teacher  prompts  him,  with 
which  he  goes  on  smoothly  to  the  last  and  returns 
to  his  seat  with  a  look  of  satisfaction.  A  second 
one  goes  up,  but  poor  fellow !  he  forgets  three 
times  ;  the  teacher  is  out  of  patience  with  the  third 
stumble,  and  down  comes  the  ruler,  whack  !  whack  ! 
upon  the  head.  With  one  hand  feeling  the  aching 
spot  and  the  other  carrying  back  his  book,  the  dis- 
comfited youngster  returns  to  his  desk  to  re-con 
his  lesson. 

This  continues  until  all  have  recited.  As  each 
one  gets  back  to  his  seat,  he  takes  his  writing  les- 
son. He  must  hold  his  brush  in  a  certain  position, 
vertically,  and  the  tighter  he  holds  it  the  more 
strength  will  appear  in  his  handwriting.  The 
schoolmaster  makes  a  tour  of  inspection  and  sees 
that  each  writes  correctly ;  writing  is  as  great  an 
art  in  China  as  painting  and  drawing  are  in  other 
countries  and  good  specimens  of  fine  writing  are 
valued  as  good  paintings  are  here. 

After  the  writing  lesson  it  is  time  to  dismiss 
school  for  breakfast.  On  re-assembling,  the  les- 


60  WHEN    I   WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

son  for  the  next  day  is  explained  to  each  one  sep- 
arately.  The  teacher  reads  it  over,  and  the  pupil 
repeats  it  after  him  several  times  until  he  gets  the 
majority  of  the  words  learned.  He  then  returns 
to  his  desk  and  shouts  anew  to  get  the  lesson 
fixed  in  his  memory.  The  more  advanced  scholars 
are  then  favored  with  the  expounding  of  Con- 
fucius's  Analects,  or  some  literary  essay.  After  the 
teacher  concludes,  each  is  given  a  passage  of  the 
text  to  explain.  In  this  way,  the  meaning  of  words 
and  sentences  is  learned,  and  made  familiar.  The 
afternoon  session  is  passed  by  the  older  pupils  in 
writing  compositions  in  prose  or  in  verse,  and  by 
the  younger  in  learning  the  next  day's  task. 

This  is  the  regular  routine,  the  order  of  exer- 
cises in  Chinese  schools. 

Grammar,  as  a  science,  is  not  taught,  nor  are  the 
mathematics.  Language  and  literature  occupy  the 
child's  attention,  as  I  have  shown,  for  the  first  five 
or  six  years;  afterwards  essay-writing  and  poetry 
are  added.  For  excellence  in  these  two  branches, 
public  prizes  are  awarded  by  the  resident  Literary 
Sub-Chancellor.  But  public  exhibitions  and  dec- 


SCHOOLS   AND   SCHOOL    LIFE.  6 1 

lamations  are  unknown,  though  Chinese  fathers 
sometimes  visit  the  schools.  The  relations  of  the 
sexes  are  such  that  a  Chinese  mother  never  has  the 
presumption  to  appear  at  the  door  of  a  schoolroom 
in  order  to  acquaint  herself  with  the  progress  of  her 
child's  education. 

Parents  furnish  the  text-books  as  a  rule.  They 
are  bound  into  volume,  and  printed  usually  with 
immovable  type. 

The  pupils  usually  behave  well.  If  not,  the  rattan 
stick  comes  promptly  into  use.  Chinese  teachers 
have  a  peculiar  method  of  meting  out  punishment. 
I  remember  an  episode  in  my  school-life  which 
illustrates  this.  One  afternoon,  when  the  old 
schoolmaster  happened  to  be  away  longer  than  his 
wont  after  the  noon  recess,  some  of  the  boys  began 
to  "  cut  up."  The  fun  reached  its  height  in  the  ex- 
ploding of  some  fire-crackers.  As  they  went  off, 
making  the  hall  ring  with  the  noise,  the  teacher 
came  in,  indignant,  you  may  be  sure.  His  defect- 
ive eyes  darted  about  and  dived  around  to  fix  upon 
the  culprit,  but  as  he  didn't  happen  to  be  in  the 
line  of  their  vision,  the  guilty  boy  stole  back  to  his 


62  WHEN    I   WAS  A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

seat  undetected.  The  old  gentleman  then  seized 
the  rattan  and  in  a  loud  tone  demanded  who  it 
was  that  had  let  off  the  crackers.  And  when  no- 
body answered,  what  do  you  suppose  he  did  ?  He 
flogged  the  whole  crowd  of  us,  saying  that  he  was 
sure  to  get  hold  of  the  right  one  and  that  the  rest 
deserved  a  whipping  for  not  making  the  real  of- 
fender known.  Truly,  the  paths  of  Chinese  learn- 
ing in  my  day  were  beset  with  thorns  and  briers  1 


CHAPTER  VIL 

RELIGIONS. 

IN  talking  about  religion  in  China,  I  need  hardly 
remind  you  that  Christianity  is  of  recent  intro- 
duction and  that  many  things  belonging  to  it,  such 
as  the  Sabbath,  churches,  ministers,  regular  meet- 
ings for  worship,  are  unknown  to  the  great  mass  of 
the  people.  The  Chinese  do  not  divide  the  year 
into  weeks,  nor  do  they  have  Christmas  or  Easter. 
In  the  place  of  those  Christian  days  they  observe 
other  festivals. 

We  have  three  systems  of  religion :  Confucian- 
ism, Taoism,  and  Buddhism. 

Confucianism,  the  religion  taught  by  Confucius,  a 
great  philosopher  who  lived  about  five  hundred 
years  before  the  birth  of  Christ  —  is  the  religion  of 
the  Emperor,  of  the  large  body  of  officials,  and  of  the 
educated  classes  generally.  This  system  is  mainly 
63 


64  WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

moral  and  practical,  in  opposition  to  the  spiritual 
and  the  speculative.  It  teaches  mankind  to  per- 
form certain  duties;  for  instance,  to  honor  and 
serve  one's  parents,  to  be  obedient  and  deferential 
towards  one's  elders,  to  be  loyal  to  one's  lawful 
sovereign  and  to  live  harmoniously  with  one's  wife. 
These  precepts  are  expanded  and  extended  so 
that  they  are  adapted  to  all  the  requirements  of 
modern  society.  Confucius  never  taught  the  ex- 
istence of  God,  for  he  felt  that  he  did  not  know 
anything  about  Him ;  nor  did  he  advance  any  the- 
ories concerning  heaven  and  hell.  He  simply 
taught  men  to  love  goodness  for  its  own  sake.  But 
this  lofty  philosophy,  however  it  might  have  suited 
the  character  of  the  philosopher  and  his  personal 
disciples,  never  was  popular  in  the  sense  that  peo- 
ple generally  accepted  it  and  practised  it.  Still 
the  Chinese  have  a  real  reverence  for  Confucius  and 
his  precepts,  and,  excepting  the  few  who  are  pro- 
fessed Buddhists  and  Taoists,  will  call  themselves 
Confucianists,  although  they  may  not  understand 
all  that  this  master  taught,  and  in  spite  of  the  fact 
that  they  worship  gods  of  the  other  systems  of 


RELIGIONS.  65 

religion.  The  gods  of  the  Confucianists,  pure  and 
simple,  are  heaven  and  earth,  the  spirits  of  the 
winds  and  of  the  five  great  mountains,  the  house- 
hold gods  (answering  to  the  Penates  of  the  Rom- 
ans) and  one's  ancestors. 

Taoism  was  formerly  a  pure  system  of  philoso- 
phy, but  it  by  degrees  sadly  degenerated  into  a 
sect  which  borrowed  its  doctrines  from  Buddhism 
and  Confucianism  and  has  had  engrafted  upon  it 
from  time  to  time  innumerable  superstitions.  The 
priests  of  this  sect  are  men  whose  business  is  to 
impose  on  the  people,  and  who  make  a  living  out 
of  their  superstitious  fears.  Thus,  if  a  person  falls 
sick,  or  is  supposed  to  be  possessed  by  an  evil 
spirit,  a  Taoist  priest  is  summoned  to  intercede 
for  him  and  to  offer  up  vows  for  his  recovery.  So 
also  when  a  person  dies,  one  of  them  rings  a  bell 
in  front  of  the  corpse,  and,  by  mumbling  a  lot  of 
gibberish,  pretends  to  open  the  gate  of  the  lower 
world  for  the  departed  soul  to  enter.  A  piece  of 
silver  is  previously  put  in  the  mouth  of  the  dead 
person  to  pay  toll  with.  Almost  everything  imag- 
inable is  worshiped  by  the  Taoists  and  those  who 


66  WHEN    I   WAS  A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

believe  in  the  efficacy  of  their  intercessions.  Every- 
thing has  a  spirit  or  spiritual  counterpart  in  the 
next  world ;  and  this  spirit,  according  as  it  is  pro- 
pitiated by  offerings,  or  offended  by  lack  thereof 
will  work  good  or  evil  to  the  man.  There  are  the 
gods  of  war,  literature,  wealth,  and  medicine  ;  and 
there  are  the  goddesses  of  married  women  and  of 
seamen.  These  are  a  few  of  the  nobler  specimens 
of  the  idols  which  are  worshiped.  The  fertile  imag- 
ination of  the  Chinese  fills  every  lake  and  river 
with  spirits,  every  street  and  house  with  ghosts, 
and  every  wood  and  mountain  with  deities.  They 
believe  the  next  world  to  be  a  shadow  of  this ; 
that  the  dead  have  everything  in  the  world  below 
which  they  had  on  earth  —  only  these  premises 
exist  as  shadows  instead  of  substance. 

Buddhism  entered  China  about  the  time  of 
Christ.  One  of  the  Emperors  of  the  Han  dynasty, 
having  heard  of  the  rise  of  a  great  sage  in  the 
West,  sent  an  embassy  to  see  him  and  to  bring 
back  his  teachings.  Doubtless  the  reputation  of 
the  marvelous  Nazarene  had  been  spread  in  the 
northern  part  of  China  by  European  and  Arabian 


RELIGIONS.  67 

traders  and  had  reached  the  ears  of  the  Chinese 
monarch.  The  embassy  sat  out  on  their  long, 
tedious  and  perilous  journey.  But  while  passing 
near  India,  they  heard  of  Buddha  and  his  sublime 
teachings.  They  supposed  him  to  be  the  sage 
they  were  seeking,  and  they  turned  aside  into 
India.  Buddha  had  by  that  time  been  absorbed 
in  Nirvana  —  he  was  dead;  and  the  embassadors 
contented  themselves  with  carrying  back  his  books 
to  China.  Under  the  lead  of  the  emperor,  Bud- 
dhism was  accorded  a  cordial  reception  in  the  em- 
pire. But  modern  Buddhism  is  not  what  Buddha 
intended  it  to  be.  For  instance,  idolatry  which  he 
never  taught,  is  practised. 

Buddhist  priests  and  nuns  live  apart  from  other 
people  in  monasteries  and  nunneries.  They  wear 
a  different  costume,  and  have  their  heads  entirely 
shaven.  They  live  on  a  vegetable  diet,  and  ob- 
tain their  food  by  their  chants,  by  singing  masses 
and  often  by  begging.  People  believe  that  wealth, 
happiness  and  longevity  can  be  procured  through 
them,  and  so,  according  to  their  means,  they  offer 
these  priests  and  nuns  money  with  which  to  buy 


68  WHEN    I   WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

incense  for  Buddha  and  oil  to  burn  in  his  lamps, 
also  that  a  number  of  prayers  shall  be  offered 
up  in  their  behalf.  Accordingly  these  priests  and 
nuns  are  enabled  to  live  a  life  of  sloth.  Some- 
times, however,  as  if  to  break  the  monotony  of 
their  existence,  they  commit  crimes  which  expose 
them  to  the  vengeance  of  outraged  law.  The 
Buddhist  monasteries  and  nunneries  were  form- 
erly houses  of  refuge  for  a  certain  class  of  crim- 
inals. Those  who  went  there  and  became  pro- 
fessed Buddhists  were  exempt  from  punishment. 

The  educated  classes  despise  both  Taoists  and 
Buddhists.  Nevertheless  in  sickness,  or  in  death, 
they  patronize  them.  This  shows  that  our  reli- 
gious instinct  is  so  strong  that  a  man  will  worship 
anything  rather  than  nothing. 

As  I  said,  there  is  nothing  in  Chinese  religions 
corresponding  to  the  Christian  Sabbath.  In  none 
of  our  festivals,  holidays  or  anniversary  celebra- 
tions, does  the  idea  of  rest  enter.  Instead  of 
churches,  we  have  temples  which  embody  the 
highest  architectural  skill  of  the  Chinese.  They 
are  built  of  brick,  one  story  in  height,  oftentime? 


RELIGIONS.  69 

very  spacious,  comprising  a  series  of  buildings  with 
alternate  courts,  and  flanked  by  others  designed 
as  living-rooms,  for  the  priests  or  nuns.  The  pre- 
siding idol  is  enshrined  in  the  innermost  hall,  and 
dressed  in  real  clothes  fashioned  in  accordance 
with  its  character.  There  are  usually  placed  in 
every  temple  a  large  number  of  idols  inferior  in 
power  to  the  chief  idol.  Before  the  chief  idol  is 
burnt  incense-sticks  and  candles  and  costly  sandal- 
wood.  Food  is  offered  on  stated  days,  as  well  as 
on  ordinary  days ;  the  worshipers  believe  that  the 
essence  of  the  food  is  eaten  by  the  spirit  of  the 
god  and  that  the  substance  remains  for  their  own 
enjoyment.  From  the  fact  that  the  devotees  them- 
selves eat  the  food  offered  to  the  idol,  people  rec- 
oncile economy  with  profuse  expenditure,  by  pre- 
tending to  be  religious  with  the  view  to  gratifying 
their  own  appetites.  Idolatry  in  China  is  not 
founded  on  the  belief  that  wood  and  stones  and 
other  inanimate  objects  are  in  themselves  worthy 
of  worship ;  but  on  account  of  the  spirits  which 
reside  or  take  up  their  abode  therein. 

Thus  the  idolatry  of  the  Chinese  is  superior  to  the 


70  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

brutal  worship  of  India,  and  to  the  brutish  worship 
of  the  Egyptians.  But  still  it  exerts  a  baneful  in- 
fluence on  the  minds  and  hearts  of  its  subjects. 

In  considering  all  systems  of  idolatry  and  super- 
stition, one  significant  fact  stands  prominent,  the 
'liter  neglect  of  religious  training  of  the  young.  China's 
three  great  religions  have  nothing  answering  to 
the  Christian  Sunday  school.  Of  course,  boys  and 
girls  pick  up  some  religious  ideas  in  their  inter- 
course with  those  about  them.  But  nobody  ever 
deliberately  sits  down  to  tell  them  of  this  god  and 
that  god,  their  origin,  character  and  power.  Only 
incidentally  is  such  knowledge  conveyed.  There 
are  many  religious  books ;  but  from  the  difficulty 
of  learning  to  read,  they  are  necessarily  sealed  to 
the  young  mind.  If  the  young  are  told  to  worship 
this  idol  and  that  idol,  they  never  understand  why 
and  wherefore  they  should  do  this.  In  time  they 
comprehend  that  they  do  it  to  obtain  favor  and  to 
gain  merit. 

I  well  remember  the  first  time  I  was  led  to  a 
temple  and  there  told  to  bend  my  knees  to  the  idol 
decked  out  in  a  gorgeous  robe,  its  face  blackened 


RELIGIONS.  71 

by  the  smoke  from  the  incense.  On  either  side  of 
the  room  stood  four  huge  idols,  with  stern  and  for- 
bidding faces.  One  of  them  was  especially  fright- 
ful. It  was  the  God  of  Thunder  represented  by 
an  image  having  the  body  of  a  man  and  the  head 
of  a  highly  caricatured  rooster.  This  idol  had  a 
hammer  in  one  hand  and  a  large  nail  in  the  other, 
with  which  he  is  supposed  to  strike  wicked  persons. 
This  god  made  such  an  impression  on  me  that  I 
had  a  horrible  dream  about  it  that  very  night.  I 
saw  him  clad  in  fierceness ;  he  moved  his  hands 
threateningly.  Almost  choked  with  fright  though 
I  was,  I  managed  to  cry  out  and  that  awoke  me. 

On  account  of  the  conservative  spirit  of  the 
Chinese,  their  traditions,  the  pure  morals  which 
Confucius  taught,  the  peculiar  school  system,  and 
the  prejudices  which  they  justly  entertain  against 
foreigners,  the  work  of  missionaries  must  progress 
slowly.  Something  has  been  done  during  the  last 
fifty  years.  The  land  has  been  surveyed  and  its 
needs  and  capabilities  made  known. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

CHINESE    HOLIDAYS. 

IT  would  be  a  matter  of  many  chapters  were  I  to 
describe  all  the  holidays  which  we  have  in 
China.  The  bare  enumeration  of  them  would  be 
as  difficult  as  tedious.  In  point  of  fact  we  have 
almost  as  many  holidays  and  festivals  as  there  are 
days  in  the  year.  Each  prominent  idol  has  a  birth- 
day, also  an  anniversary  of  his  death,  both  of  which 
are  celebrated.  There  are  some  —  the  Goddess  of 
Mercy,  for  instance  —  who  have  half  a  dozen  days 
sacred  to  them.  There  are  a  number  of  deities, 
great  persons  deified,  that  are  common  to  the 
nation;  while  each  city,  town  and  hamlet,  has 
numerous  local  deities  who  are  its  special  protect- 
ors. 

Extremely  lucky  it  is  for  the  aforesaid  idols  that 
their  devotees  are  naturally  fond  of  shows,  pag- 
72 


CHINESE    HOLIDAYS.  73 

eantry  and  display ;  otherwise,  idolatry  would  have 
little  to  attract  the  multitude.  As  it  is,  millions  of 
dollars  are  «pent  in  these  celebrations  every  year. 
At  the  dedication  of  a  temple  in  Canton,  two  years 
ago,  thirty  thousand  dollars  were  spent.  As  I  was 
present  at  this  really  great  exhibition,  I  can  give 
you  an  idea  of  it.  For  a  long  time  a  committee  of 
citizens  had  been  collecting  subscriptions  from 
dwellers  far  and  near ;  and  weeks  before  the  com- 
pletion of  the  temple,  a  large  pavilion  was  reared, 
the  material  of  which  was  mainly  bamboo  in  the 
form  of  poles,  mattings  and  slips.  Marvelous  archi- 
tectural results  are  attained  by  combining  a  few 
wooden  pillars  with  the  bamboo  in  various  forms, 
and  soon  a  light  and  airy  structure  looms  up  in  the 
sky,  which  can  be  seen  from  a  great  distance. 
This  pavilion  is  directly  in  front  of  the  temple, 
while  smaller  ones  are  built  in  vacant  lots  near  by, 
all  connected  with  the  main  building  by  awnings 
pitched  over  the  streets.  There  is  a  high  tower  in 
the  middle  of  the  great  pavilion,  on  the  ceiling  of 
which  curls  a  dragon  of  many  colors,  gleaming  with 
innumerable  spangles,  through  whose  mouth  a  rope 


74  WHEN   I    WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

is  dropped  on  which  is  suspended  an  immense 
chandelier.  The  latter  is  finely  carved  so  far  as  the 
body,  which  is  of  wood,  is  concerned,  and  for  bril- 
liancy of  coloring  has  no  rival  in  China.  It  is 
octagonal  and  each  side  throws  out  four  branches, 
which  uphold  kerosene  lamps.  The  centres  of  each 
side  are  cut  out,  and  glass  inserted,  behind  which 
automatic  figures  are  made  to  move  by  clockwork. 
The  finest  effects  of  this  chandelier  are  of  course 
obtained  when  the  lamps  are  lighted.  Suspended 
from  the  roof  in  other  parts  are  other  chandeliers, 
less  elaborate  and  smaller  perhaps,  but  not  less 
artistic  and  beautiful.  Forests  of  pendants  are 
attached  to  them,  so  that  on  all  sides  the  light  is 
reflected.  Then,  in  the  intervals  between  the  chan- 
deliers, hang  oblong  cases,  all  decorated  with  silks 
and  satins,  and  finely  carved,  containing  dolls, 
about  two  feet  high,  elegantly  dressed  in  character, 
and  grouped  to  represent  historical  scenes.  These 
figures  have  machinery  placed  beneath  them  to 
make  them  shake  their  heads,  or  lift  their  hands, 
or  sway  their  bodies,  just  as  the  role  of  each 
requires.  There  are  also  smaller  cases  in  which 


CHINESE    HOLIDAYS.  75 

are  arranged  tableaux  from  romance  of  which  the 
Chinese  are  very  fond.  Sometimes,  a  comic  tableau 
is  given ;  for  instance,  in  one  case  are  shown  a 
number  of  blind  men  fighting  with  bamboo  sticks 
on  the  street,  and  as  the  blows  are  dealt  blindly 
and  in  all  directions  (by  means  of  the  machinery), 
the  crowd  of  spectators  never  fail  to  laugh. 

Flowers  of  all  the  varieties  which  grow  in  the 
"  Flower)-  Kingdom  "  form  an  important  and  pleas- 
ing feature  of  the  entertainment.  They  are  made 
into  shapes  of  men  or  birds,  and  their  delicious 
odors  pervade  the  whole  place.  The  walls  of  the 
different  pavilions  are  gayly  painted.  On  them 
pictures  in  water-colors  are  hung,  as  well  as  scrolls 
bearing  the  writings  of  celebrated  men.  Under 
these  are  placed,  in  rows,  fine  flower  pots  crowned 
with  the  choicest  flowers  of  the  season.  Dwarfed 
trees  too  are  placed  beside  them. 

There  are  platforms  in  every  good-sized  pavilion 
where  the  musicians  sit  and  discourse  music  for 
the  pleasure  of  a  most  attentive  audience.  There 
are  drums,  kettledrums,  immense  cymbals,  gongs, 
cornets,  flutes,  castanets,  two-stringed  fiddles  and 


76  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

I  don't  know  what  else  besides,  and  when  they 
are  sounded  together  the  effect  is  overwhelming  on 
ears  unaccustomed  to  such  strange  symphonies. 
The  flutist  first  blows  his  flute,  then  the  cornetist 
joins  with  his  toot,  and  then  the  kettledrum  man 
strikes  up,  which  is  a  signal  for  the  cymbals  to 
clash  and  the  gong  to  raise  its  hoarse  cry,  while  the 
shrill  fiddles  may  be  distinguished  in  the  din  like 
the  witches'  voices  above  the  storm  in  Macbeth. 

Worse  still  follows,  when  the  musicians  turn  from 
instrumental  to  vocal  music,  and  one  of  them  gives 
you  a  solo  with  that  falsetto-pitch  which  is  meant 
to  imitate  a  female  voice. 

While  the  crowd  of  people  are  enjoying  the  differ- 
ent sights  and  sounds  in  the  pavilions,  inside  the 
temple  various  ceremonies  are  going  on.  The 
temple  itself,  entirely  new,  is  finely  decorated  with 
both  permanent  and  temporary  ornamentations. 
Among  the  first  are  frescos  and  wood-carvings  and 
figures  in  bas-relief;  among  the  second,  banners, 
flower-baskets  and  pictures.  Buddhist  priests  are 
praying  to  Buddha  in  the  central  hall,  while  in  the 
back  hall,  where  the  shrine  of  the  chief  deity  is 


CHINESE    HOLIDAYS.  77 

situated,  flocks  of  worshipers  flit  to  and  fro  mak- 
ing offerings  of  food,  lighting  candles,  and  burning 
incense.  There  is  no  scene  in  China  more  ani- 
mated. Everybody  who  has  any  religion  in  him 
comes  to  worship  and  to  ask  some  favor  of  the  god, 
and  each  person  leaves  more  or  less  money  with 
the  keepers  of  the  temple.  In  my  native  city  festi- 
vals similar  to  this  occur  two  or  three  times  in  the 
week  in  different  parts  of  the  town.  Of  course  the 
schools  are  kept  open  on  such  festal  days,  other- 
wise little  study  could  be  accomplished.  School- 
boys go  to  the  shows  in  the  evening  and  girls  too. 
sometimes,  go  by  themselves  to  enjoy  the  sights 

But  there  are  holidays  which  may  be  called 
national,  since  they  are  observed  all  over  the 
country. 

First  and  most  important  are  the  New  Year  holi- 
days, which  are  celebrated  with  as  much  dclat  as 
unceasing  firing  of  pyrotechnics,  calls  of  ceremony 
and  universal  good-will  and  joy  will  contribute. 
Debts  are  paid  up  at  the  end  of  the  year,  and  for 
the  first  week  or  two  little  or  no  business  is  trans- 
acted. Every  one  gives  himself  up  to  jollity.  Chil- 


78  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY    IN    CHINA. 

dren,  on  such  days,  are  surfeited  with  sweetmeats, 
and  holes  are  made  in  their  holiday  clothes  by  burn- 
ing fire-crackers.  Largesses  are  bestowed  upon 
both  children  and  servants,  while  beggars  are  also 
remembered,  so  that  this  season  is  really  the  most 
joyous  of  the  year  —  the  time  when  charity  is  most 
charitable  and  benevolence  assumes  a  more  benevo- 
lent aspect. 

Next,  in  order  of  time,  comes  the  Feast  of  Lan- 
terns. The  main  feature  of  this  fete,  as  the  name 
implies,  is  a  procession  with  lanterns  of  all  shapes 
and  kinds.  Soon  after  nightfall,  men  and  boys  get 
in  line,  each  carrying  upon  a  bamboo  pole  a  great 
paper  bird,  or  quadruped,  or  fish,  inside  of  which 
candles  are  lit.  Very  fantastic  shapes  sometimes 
are  seen,  and  mythological  books  are  ransacked  to 
procure  strange  creatures. 

Imagine  three  or  four  hundred  of  these  lanterns 
passing  before  you,  all  brilliant  with  rich  colors. 
Sandal-wood  is  burnt  in  censers  carried  in  small 
movable  pavilions,  while  bands  of  music  mingle 
their  racket  with  the  applause  of  the  spectators 
and  the  jokes  of  the  men  in  the  procession. 


CHINESE   HOLIDAYS.  79 

Last  of  all  an  immense  and  terrible  dragon 
about  forty  feet  in  length  is  borne  along  supported 
on  bamboo  poles  by  a  dozen  or  twenty  men. 

There  is  another  procession  similar  to  this  in  the 
fourth  month,  only  it  takes  place  in  the  daytime 
instead  of  at  night,  and  the  large  number  and 
variety  of  lanterns  are  wanting. 

In  the  fifth  month  are  held  the  dragon-boat 
races.  These  boats  are  narrow  and  long,  capable 
of  holding  about  one  hundred  men  sitting  one 
behind  the  other.  Each  one  carries  a  paddle,  and 
the  boat  is  so  made  that  it  can  go  just  as  well  back- 
wards as  forwards.  The  direction  devolves  upon  the 
men  in  the  ends  of  the  boat.  In  the  centre  the  idol 
from  whose  ward  or  district  the  boat  hails,  sits 
enthroned  with  an  immense  umbrella  of  red  silk  to 
keep  the  sun  from  tanning  his  complexion.  A 
band  of  music  accompanies  each  boat.  By  its 
warlike  clangor  it  encourages  the  racers,  while  its 
drum  beats  the  time  for  the  stroke.  Banners  are 
given  after  the  race,  as  spoils  of  victory,  to  be 
placed  in  the  temple  of  the  patron  deity.  The 
scene  on  the  rivers  on  such  an  occasion  is  very 


So  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY    IN   CHINA. 

animated  and  the  cheers  of  the  spectators  from  the 
different  districts  attest  their  interest. 

In  the  eighth  month  comes  the  Festival  of  the 
Moon,  answering  to  the  Harvest  Festival  in  West- 
ern countries.  What  are  called  "moon-cakes  "  are 
sold  at  this  season.  If  the  year  has  been  product- 
ive there  will  be  a  great  deal  of  rejoicing.  Pres- 
ents are  interchanged  at  this  time  as  also  at  other 
festival  seasons.  As  the  moon  becomes  gradually 
full  there  appears  in  it  to  the  Chinese  eye  a  man 
who  is  climbing  a  tree.  The  full  moon  is  greeted 
with  much  ceremony,  and  the  night  on  which  the 
luminary  appears  its  brightest  is  passed  in  feast- 
ing and  rejoicing. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

STORIES   AND   STORY-TELLERS. 

THE  Chinese  are  passionately  fond  of  stories 
and  story- tell  ing.  On  the  public  streets 
and  squares,  professional  story-tellers  congregate 
from  noon  to  midnight,  going  over  the  achieve- 
ments of  a  hero  or  portraying  the  despair  of  a  lover. 
They  recite  with  a  dramatic  power  not  to  be  ex- 
pected from  their  sluggish  movements  and  stolid 
countenances. 

All  classes  indulge  in  this  favorite  pastime.  The 
dignified  scholar  relishes  a  good  story  as  much  as 
a  child  in  the  lap  a  fairy  tale.  Story-books  in  the 
language  can  be  counted  by  the  tens  of  thousands. 
The  subjects  are  historical  or  romantic ;  of  war, 
of  love,  of  magic  and  enchantment.  Some  of  the 
legends  are  really  beautiful  and  are  as  interesting 

as  a  good  English  novel.     There  is  one  book  which 

Si 


82  WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN    CHINA. 

is  the  unfailing  delight  of  all  classes  ;  I  mean  the 
History  of  tfie  Three  Kingdoms.  It  is  an  historical 
novel  in  twenty  volumes,  illustrated  with  wood-cuts. 
For  arrangement  of  details,  delineation  of  charac- 
ter and  elegance  of  diction,  I  have  found  few  books 
in  English  its  equal.  It  is,  in  one  sense,  an  epic 
in  prose.  When  a  boy,  I  used  to  enjoy  hearing 
passages  of  it  read  or  explained. 

Books  of  ballads  are  to  be  found  in  every  house- 
hold. Our  ladies  take  great  delight  in  learning  to 
sing  them  to  their  own  music,  music  which  is  not 
printed  in  the  books,  but  suggests  itself  as  they 
recite  or  sing.  Ballad  singers  are  found  on  all  the 
public  squares  where  they  earn  their  living  by 
passing  around  the  basket  at  each  crisis  of  the 
story.  The  spectators  are  eager  to  hear  the  rest, 
of  course,  and  so  will  be  more  easily  induced  to  pay. 

There  are  no  story-books  which  children  can 
read  and  enjoy,  since  it  takes  them  so  long  to 
learn  the  characters.  But  picture  books  are  some- 
times given  to  children.  Still  they  are  not  made 
specially  for  them  as  they  are  in  this  country ;  and 
colored  pictures  are  too  costly  to  be  put  into  chil- 


STORIES  AND   STORY-TELLERS.  83 

dren's  hands  because  they  must  be  drawn  by  hand, 
painted  by  artists.  So  Chinese  boys  and  girls 
lack  those  facilities  for  enjoyment  in  picture-books 
which  American  and  English  children  have  in  so 
great  abundance. 

To  give  an  idea  of  the  stories  which  are  most 
eagerly  listened  to,  let  me  tell  you  one  myself 
which  may  be  taken  as  a  fair  sample  of  the  shorter 
ones.  It  has  the  advantage  of  being  true  and 
every  whit  reliable.  For  want  of  a  more  appropri- 
ate title  I  will  call  it : 

SOLD. 

My  fellow-townsman  Chang  was  a  scholar,  who, 
having  obtained  his  M.  A.  degree,  took  up  the  pro- 
fession of  law,  for  his  success  in  which  he  was  dis- 
liked by  his  neighbors  in  Fragrant  Hills.  The  time 
came  when  it  behooved  him  to  go  to  Pekin  for  the 
purpose  of  passing  examination  for  the  doctor's 
degree.  Accordingly,  with  three  hundred  dollars 
in  his  three  trunks,  many  books  and  "  skinning 
papers,"  he  went  to  Canton  to  obtain  documents 
of  identification.  Pending  the  issue  of  these,  he 


84  WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

stopped  at  an  inn,  resolved  to  set  out  to  Pekin 
by  steamer  as  soon  as  possible.  In  the  next 
room,  separated  from  his  simply  by  a  wooden 
partition,  lodged  two  gentlemen,  who,  by  their 
Northern  dialect,  declared  themselves  strangers, 
and  who  appeared  to  be  on  the  same  errand  as 
himself.  He  overheard  them  more  than  once 
quarrelling  about  a  rich  widow  who  had  ended  the 
prescribed  twenty-seven  months  of  mourning  and 
was  taking  active  measures  to  change  her  lonely 
condition.  Filled  with  curiosity,  Mr.  Chang  panted 
to  know  more ;  so  dropping  into  their  room  one 
day,  after  duly  introducing  himself,  he  said,  "  For 
days  I  have  heard  you  disputing  over  a  marriage 
affair.  Pray,  will  you  enlighten  my  understanding 
by  telling  me  the  interesting  facts  in  the  case  ?" 

"  With  pleasure,  sir,"  answered  the  elder  of  the 
two ;  "you  see  there  lives  near  here  a  pretty  widow 
whose  husband,  a  trader  from  Kiang-si,  had  the 
bad  taste  to  leave  her  an  immense  fortune  at  his 
death.  Now,  as  she  has  no  children,  she  is  anx- 
ious to  marry  again.  But  she  will  marry  none  ex- 
cept a  scholar  of  distinguished  merit,  a  man  of  fine 


STORIES   AND   STORY-TELLERS.  85 

character  and  suitable  age,  money  being  evidently 
no  object  to  her.  When  we  learned  that,  we  both 
wanted  to  offer  ourselves  and  that  explains  why  we 
have  disturbed  your  serenity  in  such  an  unseemly 
manner.  But  yesterday  we  heard  from  a  go-be- 
tween that  she  had  set  her  heart  on  marrying  a 
native  of  this  province.  So  we  are  out  of  the 
race." 

"  Such  a  man,"  said  Chang,  "  is  not  hard  to  find. 
I  know  one  now,  not  a  //  from  here,  who  can  fulfil 
these  conditions.  Do  you  think  there  is  any  chance 
for  a  worthless  person  like  me  ?  " 

"You  do  yourself  injustice,"  said  the  younger 
man.  "  I  am  sure  she  ought  to  feel  honored  by  an 
alliance  with  a  scholar  of  your  blooming  talent. 
If  you  wish  to  try  your  luck,  I  can  tell  you  where 
the  go-between  lives.  Will  you  have  the  goodness 
to  precede  us  ? " 

Arrived  at  the  entrance  of  a  cottage,  the  two 
took  their  leave.  Mr.  Chang  knocked  at  the  door. 
It  was  opened  by  the  matchmaker  herself.  She 
was  a  woman  of  the  poorer  class,  dressed  in  home- 
spun linen,  having  feet  that  had  evidently  borne 


86  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

the  tortures  of  binding  in  vain,  for  they  were  still 
as  large  as  Nature  could  have  made  them. 

Mr.  Chang  stated  the  purpose  of  his  visit ;  upon 
which  the  woman  confirmed  what  he  had  heard, 
moreover,  adding  that  the  lady  was  fastidious  and 
would  want  to  see  him  before  consenting  to  marry 
him.  Chang  said  he  was  glad  of  an  interview. 
He  agreed  to  reward  the  matchmaker  richly  in 
case  of  success.  After  appointing  the  next  morn- 
ing for  the  ordeal,  he  wended  his  way  back  to  the 
inn,  feeling  decidedly  elated  with  his  diplomacy. 

The  next  morning  saw  him  dressed  in  his  best 
silk  gown  and  adorned  with  a  beard  trimmed  for 
the  occasion.  The  wily  matchmaker  was  waiting 
for  him,  and  soon  started  with  him  on  their  errand. 
A  little  after,  they  paused  at  the  door  of  an  ele- 
gant mansion,  which  by  its  size  and  decorations, 
gave  evidence  of  the  wealth  and  rank  of  its  occu- 
pants. 

A  servant  ushered  them  into  the  reception-room 
and  went  in  to  announce  their  arrival.  While 
waiting,  Chang  feasted  his  legal  eyes  on  beautiful 
pictures,  mahogany  furniture  and  costly  curios, 


STORIES   AND   STORY-TELLERS.  87 

while  his  ears  were  charmed  with  the  musical 
"  clink,  clink,  clink,"  of  the  silver  dollars  which 
were  being  weighed  in  the  next  room.  Servants 
flitted  to  and  fro,  carrying  receipts  or  bags  of 
money.  Our  lawyer's  heart  ordinarily  would  have 
softened  at  the  sight  of  money,  but  on  this  occa- 
sion it  fairly  melted.  His  love  for  the  pretty 
widow  increased  in  warmth  with  every  bag  of 
money  added  to  the  pile. 

In  the  midst  of  his  enchanting  reverie,  the  lady 
entered  supported  by  two  servants.  He  was  more 
than  surprised  by  her  appearance.  Her  face  was 
full  and  round  and  she  had  the  daintiest  little 
feet  you  ever  saw.  He  had  been  led  to  expect 
good  looks,  but  not  beauty  like  this.  Meeting 
his  eye  bent  on  her  in  admiration,  she  looked  down 
in  modesty,  and,  having  presented  him  a  cup  of  tea, 
she  withdrew,  not  having  uttered  a  word,  according 
to  etiquette. 

The  go-between  followed  her  and  after  a  little 
while,  which  seemed  a  cycle  to  the  expectant  lover, 
she  reappeared,  beaming  with  smiles,  announcing 
their  success.  In  a  word,  the  lady  was  so  pleased 


88  WHEN    I    WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

with  Chang's  appearance  that  she  had  decided  to 
accept  him.  She  begged  him  to  move  into  her 
house  that  he  might  superintend  the  preparations 
for  the  wedding. 

He  readily  assented ;  then  hurried  back  to  the  ho- 
tel with  a  heart  full  of  love  for  the  beautiful  widow 
and  benevolent  intent  towards  her  silver  dollars. 
To  say  that  he  trod  on  air  is  to  speak  within 
bounds.  His  soul  was  electrified  with  joy. 

The  hotel  bill  paid,  his  effects  were  carried  "  to 
his  house."  An  elegant  room  was  given  him  for 
his  temporary  occupancy.  A  delicate  lunch  of 
sweetmeats  and  pastry  was  served,  after  which  the 
lady  sent  word  to  ask  if  he  would  condescend  to  buy 
a  fan  for  her.  It  was  only  to  be  had  in  one  place. 

"  Certainly,"  said  Chang,  and  set  out  in  search 
of  the  store.  But  it  was  a  search  for  the  "  blessed 
isles."  After  beating  around  the  dense  city  for 
some  hours,  he  returned  hungry  and  crestfallen. 

But  greater  disasters  awaited  him.  He  found  to 
his  dismay  the  door  of  the  house  locked  from  the 
outside.  "  What  does  it  mean  ? "  he  muttered.  He 
knocked,  pushed,  kicked;  but  in  vain.  All  was 


STORIES    AND    STORY-TELLERS.  89 

still  within.  Now  thoroughly  frightened,  he  inquired 
at  a  store  opposite.  "Why,  sir,  this  house  was 
rented  together,  with  its  furniture,  by  a  family 
named  Low.  They  moved  off  this  afternoon. 
Nothing  bad  has  happened,  I  hope  ? " 

"  No !  no ! "  said  Chang,  his  head  alt  in  a  whirl, 
and  staggered  out.  That  night  he  spent  at  the  old 
inn  minus  three  trunks,  three  hundred  dollars, 
many  books  and  "  skinning  papers." 

The  next  morning  he  found  the  two  strangers. 
On  seeing  them,  the  potential  energy  of  his  pent-up 
rage  became  kinetic.  He  could  have  kicked  the 
two  M.  A.'s  ten  feet  with  an  initial  velocity  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  pounds  per  second,  but  he  did 
not,  for  he  was  a  lawyer.  So  he  gave  vent  to 
abusive  epithets  and  terrific  denunciation.  They 
declared  their  innocence  and  advised  him  to  open 
the  flood-gates  of  his  wrath  upon  the  go-between. 

Chang  saw  that  he  was  only  wasting  words  on 
them,  so  he  went  off  to  seek  that  worthy  person, 
having  no  idea  of  finding  her  at  home.  But  she 
was,  much  to  his  surprise,  and  coolly  inquired  how 
he  liked  his  new  home.  "  New  home !  You  wretch  ! 


90  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

A  fine  match  you  have  made  for  me  !  I  will  have 
you  arrested.  I  will  have  you  punished  for  con- 
spiracy." 

She  asserted  her  innocence.  Indeed  "  she  hoped 
to  be  thunder-struck  if  she  had  done  wrong  in  pro- 
curing for  him  a  pretty  wife  and  a  big  fortune." 

Words  ran  high ;  neighbors  rushed  in,  to  whom 
both  the  belligerents  appealed.  Chang  then  began 
a  recital  of  his  wrong.  He  was  interrupted  by  the 
matchmaker.  "  Oh,  is  that  all ! "  said  she,  "  why, 
now  I  remember  what  Lady  Low  said  the  other 
day — that  her  father  was  sick  and  she  was  liable  to 
be  summoned  to  his  bedside  at  any  time.  If  you 
wish  it  I'll  take  you  to  your  father-in-law's ;  but  I 
must  have  ten  dollars  for  my  trouble.  As  soon  as 
you  see  her,  you  are  to  give  me  the  money,  do  you 
promise  ? "  Chang  groaned  assent,  seeing  no  better 
mode  of  procedure. 

She  led  him  into  the  audience  hall  of  a  large 
house  and  pointed  to  an  elegantly  attired  lady  in  the 
women's  apartments.  "  There  she  is  !  See  her  ? " 

Sure  enough,  it  was  the  modest  Lady  Low. 
Chang  handed  the  matchmaker  the  money,  with 


STORIES    AND    STORY-TELLERS.  9! 

which  she  walked  off.  He  hesitated  what  to  do 
next.  There  was  no  servant  near  to  whom  he 
could  speak.  Just  then  the  lady  caught  sight  of 
him  and  smiled.  Oh  that  smile  !  It  was  worthy 
of  the  Sirens.  Just  as  he  raised  his  hand  to 
beckon  to  her,  an  old  gentleman  came  out  of  an 
adjoining  room.  "  What  is  this  ?  "  he  cried.  "  Are 
you  addressing  my  wife  ?  Help  !  thieves  !  robbers ! 
murder ! " 

Out  rushed  a  troop  of  servants.  Now  fly ! 
Chang,  fly  for  your  life  !  Yes,  he  flew,  nor  paused 
till  he  got  to  the  inn  where  he  learned  that  his 
neighbors  had  set  sail.  He  also  found  the  cunning 
matchmaker  absent.  Now  realizing  how  com- 
pletely he  was  sold,  and  that  the  offenders  could 
not  be  punished,  while  he  himself  was  liable  to  be 
arrested  for  trespassing  in  a  man's  house  and  at- 
tempting to  destroy  his  domestic  happiness,  he 
sailed  for  Fragrant  Hills  in  a  state  of  mind  far 
from  tranquil. 

The  story  got  abroad  and  the  whole  town  grinned 
from  ear  to  ear,  while  even  his  own  friends  enjoyed 
his  discomfiture. 


CHAPTER  X. 

HOW   I    WENT   TO   SHANGHAI. 

ABOUT  forty  years  ago,  there  came  to  this 
country  under  the  auspices  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Brown,  an  American  missionary  in  China,  a  Chi- 
nese youth  —  who  was  destined  to  exert  a  potent 
influence  on  the  future  of   the    Chinese  Empire. 
Many  have  heard  of  him  or  read  about  him ;  his 
name  is  Yung  Wing.     Inspired  by  a  lofty  ambi- 
^  Q      tion,  he  worked  his  way  through  preparatory  school 
and  college,  graduating  from  Yale  in  1854  with 
high  honors. 

He  went  back  to  China  soon  after  his  gradua- 
tion and  engaged  in  business  at  Shanghai.  But 
business  with  the  incidental  pleasure  of  money- 
making,  did  not  entirely  absorb  his  attention. 
China  was  at  that  time  having  troublesome  diplo- 
matic negotiations  with  foreign  powers,  and  was 
92 


HOW    I    WENT   TO   SHANGHAI.  93 

being  taken  advantage  of  right  and  left  for  want  of 
men  in  office  who  understood  the  customs,  the 
laws  and  the  civilization  of  Western  countries. 

Dr.  Wing,  indignant  at  the  wrongs  which  China 
had  suffered  and  was  suffering  at  the  hands  of  so- 
called  "  Christian  "  and  "  enlightened  "  nations, 
sought  for  a  remedy,  and  conceived  the  brilliant 
project  of  educating  a  number  of  Chinese  boys  in 
America  for  future  service  at  the  government  ex- 
pense. 

He  made  his  plan  known  to  prominent  Chinese 
officials.  At  first  he  met  with  no  sympathy,  no 
encouragement.  Still,  he  persevered ;  and  after 
twelve  years  of  patient  waiting  and  active  labor, 
he  succeeded  in  convincing  two  of  the  most  pow- 
erful ministers  at  the  court  of  Pekin  of  the  feasi- 
bility of  his  scheme.  In  consequence,  an  edict  was 
issued  by  the  emperor  to  enforce  its  execution. 

A  school  was  established  at  Shanghai  to  receive 
candidates,  and  announcement  made  that  the  gov- 
ernment had  appropriated  a  large  sum  of  money 
to  educate  one  hundred  and  twenty  boys  in  America, 
who  were  to  be  sent  in  four  detachments,  in  four 


94  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN.  CHINA. 

successive  years,  beginning  with  1872  ;  and  that  a 
candidate,  on  his  election  after  a  term  of  probation 
at  the  school,  should  have  the  cadet's  button  and 
rank  conferred  on  him  ;  and  that  after  fifteen  years 
of  residence  in  America,  during  which  period  the 
government  promised  to  defray  all  expenses  and 
exercise  parental  care  over  the  youths,  they  were 
to  return  for  entrance  into  its  service. 

Such  an  offer  was  un-heard-of.  People  doubt- 
less were  dazzled  by  its  splendor,  as  many  as  came 
in  view  of  it.  But  as  no  newspapers  existed  there, 
excepting  at  Pekin  and  some  of  the  treaty  ports, 
the  news  did  not  spread  far.  Only  faint  and  vague 
rumors  reached  the  inland  towns.  Hence,  com- 
paratively few  candidates  presented  themselves 
and  these  hailed,  for  the  most  part,  from  the  mari- 
time provinces.  In  fact,  parents  were  not  over- 
eager  to  send  their  sons  away  so  far,  for  so  long  a 
time,  and  to  a  land  unknown  to  them,  the  inhabi- 
tants of  which  they  heard  and  believed  were  bar- 
barians. 

A  cousin  of  mine,  however,  who  was  in  business 
then  at  Shanghai,  thought  differently ;  and  was 


HOW   I   WENT  TO   SHANGHAI.  95 

not  deterred  by  any  such  considerations.  He 
came  home  with  glowing  accounts  of  the  new 
movement;  and  so  painted  the  golden  prospects 
of  the  successful  candidate  that  he  persuaded  my 
mother  to  let  me  go.  I  was  then  twelve  years  old ; 
my  father  had  died  three  years  before  and  my 
mother  had  assumed  the  sole  charge  of  her  three 
sons.  But  she  was  not  going  to  force  me  to  go, 
whether  willing  or  unwilling  ;  and  so  left  the  mat- 
ter to  me  to  decide. 

I  was  more  or  less  adventurous  in  disposition. 
A  chance  to  see  the  world  was  just  what  I  wanted. 
I  said  yes  without  hesitation.  My  mother,  if  she 
had  any  misgivings,  wisely  kept  them  to  herself ; 
and,  like  a  brave  woman  who  has  resolved  to  deny 
herself  for  the  good  of  her  child,  she  set  to  work 
to  prepare  me  for  the  journey  to  Shanghai. 

For  a  whole  month,  I  reveled  at  the  sight  of  new 
clothes  that  were  made  for  me.  Friends  and  rel- 
atives made  presents  of  food  for  the  voyage,  sweet- 
meats predominating.  At  last,  after  bidding  fare- 
well to  all  my  uncles,  aunts  and  cousins,  with  others 
of  my  kith  and  kin,  I  paid  my  last  respects  to  my 


96  WHEN   I   WAS  A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

mother  in  the  conventional  way.  I  did  not  em- 
brace her  and  kiss  her.  O  no !  that  would  have 
been  un-Chinese  and  undignified.  What  I  actually 
did  was  to  bow  my  head  four  times  to  the  ground 
upon  my  knees.  She  tried  to  appear  cheerful,  but 
I  could  see  that  her  eyes  were  moistened  with 
tears.  I  did  not  think  much  of  it  then,  but  I  re- 
membered it  in  after-time.  Ah !  a  mother's  love 
is  strong  wherever  it  is  found.  She  gave  me  some 
pocket-money  and  bade  me  be  a  good  boy  and 
write  often. 

With  those  words  ringing  in  my  ears  and  the 
memory  of  that  sad  face  fresh  in  my  mind,  I  walked 
briskly  by  the  side  of  my  cousin  down  to  the  wharf 
at  which  the  junk  was  moored,  which  vessel,  of  a 
style  well-known  by  picture  to  American  boys  and 
girls,  was  to  carry  us  to  Hongkong,  whence  we  ex- 
pected to  take  steamer  for  Shanghai.  We  sailed 
down  the  narrow  river  with  a  stiff  breeze  in  our 
favor,  after  offerings  had  been  made  to  the  river- 
god,  and  the  gong  had  announced  to  the  world 
that  "  we  were  off." 

The  river  was  so  serpentine  with  its  numerous 


HOW    I    WENT   TO    SHANGHAI.  97 

bends  that  the  men  often  had  to  take  a  run  on  the 
banks  to  pull  the  boat  along.  The  sun  was  just 
tinging  the  western  cloud-castles  with  crimson 
and  gold  and  as  we  went  further  and  further  from 
the  town  a  panorama  of  great  beauty  passed  before 
our  eyes.  Mountains  and  stream,  and  fields  wavy 
with  golden  grain,  and  towering  pagodas,  all 
gemmed  by  the  setting  sun,  composed  this  kalei- 
doscopic scene.  But  I  had  no  heart  to  enjoy  it.  I 
was  homesick  for  the  first  time  in  my  life.  A 
sense  of  solitude,  of  desolation  —  a  feeling  of  loss 
possessed  me  — and  I  retired  into  the  small  cabin 
to  weep  unseen.  Before  long,  a  tossing  of  the  boat 
announced  the  awful  presence  of  the  sea,  and  soon 
after  I  realized  what  seasickness  meant. 

We  arrived  at  Hongkong  the  next  morning.  It 
was  a  wonderful  place  to  me.  I  never  wearied 
with  gazing  at  the  vessels,  which  were  of  all  sorts 
and  all  nationalities.  The  foreigners  too  were 
strange  sights.  How  I  stared  at  them  and  won- 
dered how  they  could  move  with  their  "strait- 
jackets  and  tight  pantaloons !  " 

I  had  an  adventure  which  I  can  never  forget. 


98  WHEN    I   WAS   A    BOY   IN   CHINA. 

My  cousin  left  me  behind  with  friends  while  he 
went  to  the  theatre.  I  inwardly  rebelled  at  this 
treatment,  and,  against  the  advice  of  the  people 
at  the  store  where  we  stayed,  set  out  in  that  strange 
place  to  find  the  theatre,  taking  the  money  which 
my  mother  had  given  me  to  buy  a  ticket  I  walked 
quite  a  distance,  stopping  frequently  to  gaze  at 
the  show  windows  and  at  the  foreigners,  till  I  came 
upon  one  at  last.  Although  I  had  seen  theatrical 
performances  before,  I  had  never  been  in  a  per- 
manent theatre,  so  I  was  determined  to  enjoy  my 
new  experience.  But  alas !  no  enjoyment  came  to 
me.  I  felt  uneasy  the  whole  time  and  looked  all 
over  the  auditory  to  see  if  my  cousin  was  there. 
But  he  was  nowhere  to  be  seen.  Scared  and  trem- 
bling for  the  consequences,  I  left  the  building  before 
the  grand  climax  when  one  hero  was  to  distinguish 
himself  by  killing  another  and  went  my  way  back 
to  the  store.  My  cousin  returned  before  long  and, 
being  informed  of  my  escapade  gave  me  a  sound 
whipping.  In  two  days  we  went  on  board  a  steamer 
and  arrived  at  Shanghai  after  a  four  days' journey 
from  Hong-kong,  without  any  incident  or  accident. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

HOW    I    PREPARED    FOR   AMERICA. 

ON  our  arrival  at  Shanghai,  my  cousin  took 
me  to  see  our  aunt  whose  husband  was  a 
comprador  in  an  American  tea  warehouse.  A 
comprador  is  usually  found  in  every  foreign  hong 
or  firm.  He  acts  as  interpreter  and  also  as  agent 
for  the  company.  He  has  a  corps  of  accountants 
called  shroffs,  assistants  and  workmen  under  him. 
My  uncle  was  rich  and  lived  in  a  fine  house 
built  after  European  models.  It  was  there  that  I 
first  came  in  immediate  contact  with  Western  civil- 
ization. But  it  was  a  long  time  before  I  got  used 
to  those  red-headed  and  tight-jacketed  foreigners. 
"How  can  they  walk  or  run?"  I  asked  myself 
curiously  contemplating  their  close  and  confining 
garments.  The  dress  of  foreign  ladies  was  still 
another  mystery  to  me.  They  shocked  my  sense 
99 


IOO  WHEN   I   WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

of  propriety  also,  by  walking  arm-in-arm  with  the 
men.  "  How  peculiar  their  voices  are !  how 
screechy  I  how  sharp !  "  Such  were  some  of  the 
thoughts  I  had  about  those  peculiar  people. 

A  few  days  after,  I  was  taken  to  the  Tung  Mim 
Kuen,  or  Government  School,  where  I  was  des- 
tined to  spend  a  whole  year,  preparatory  to  my 
American  education.  It  was  established  by  the 
government  and  was  in  charge  of  a  commissioner, 
a  deputy-commissioner,  two  teachers  of  Chinese, 
and  two  teachers  of  English.  The  building  was 
quite  spacious,  consisting  of  two  stories.  The  large 
schoolroom,  library,  dining-rooms  and  kitchen  oc- 
cupied the  first  floor.  The  offices,  reception  room 
and  dormitories  were  overhead.  The  square  ta- 
bles of  the  teachers  of  Chinese  were  placed  at 
each  end  of  the  schoolroom ;  between  them  were 
oblong  tables  and  stools  of  the  pupils. 

I  was  brought  into  the  presence  of  the  com- 
missioners and  teachers;  and  having  performed 
my  kow-tow  to  each,  a  seat  was  assigned  me 
among  my  mates,  who  scanned  me  with  a  good 
deal  of  curiosity.  It  was  afternoon,  and  the 


HOW    I    PREPARED    FOR    AMERICA.  IOI 

Chinese  lessons  were  being  recited.  So  while 
they  looked  at  me  through  the  corners  of  their 
eyes,  they  were  also  attending  to  their  lessons  with 
as  much  vim  and  voice  as  they  could  command. 
Soon  recitations  were  over,  not  without  one  or  two 
pupils  being  sent  back  to  their  seats  to  study  their 
tasks  over  again,  a  few  blows  being  administered 
to  stimulate  the  intellect  and  quicken  memory. 

At  half-past  four  o'clock,  school  was  out  and  the 
boys,  to  the  number  of  forty,  went  forth  to  play. 
They  ran  around,  chased  each  other  and  wasted 
their  cash  on  fruits  and  confections.  I  soon  made 
acquaintance  with  some  of  them,  but  I  did  not  ex- 
perience any  of  the  hazing  and  bullying  to  which 
new  pupils  in  American  and  English  schools  are 
subject.  I  found  that  there  were  two  parties 
among  the  boys.  I  joined  one  of  them  and  had 
many  friendly  encounters  with  the  rival  party.  As 
in  America,  we  had  a  great  deal  of  generous  emu- 
lation, and  consequently  much  boasting  of  the 
prizes  and  honors  won  by  the  rival  societies.  Our 
chief  amusements  were  sight-seeing,  shuttle-cock- 
kicking  and  penny-guessing. 


102  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY    IN    CHINA. 

Supper  came  at  six  when  we  had  rice,  meats 
and  vegetables.  Our  faces  invariably  were  washed 
after  supper  in  warm  water.  This  is  customary. 
Then  the  lamps  were  lighted ;  and  when  the 
teachers  came  down,  full  forty  pairs  of  lungs  were 
at  work  with  lessons  of  next  day.  At  eight  o'clock, 
one  of  the  teachers  read  and  explained  a  long  ex- 
tract from  Chinese  history,  which,  let  me  assure 
you,  is  replete  with  interest.  At  nine  o'clock  we 
were  sent  to  our  beds.  Nothing  ever  happened  of 
special  interest.  I  remember  that  we  used  to  talk 
till  pretty  late,  and  that  some  of  the  nights  that  I 
spent  there  were  not  of  the  pleasantest  kind  be- 
cause I  was  haunted  by  the  fear  of  spirits. 

After  breakfast  the  following  morning  we  assem- 
bled in  the  same  schoolroom  to  study  our  English 
lessons.  The  teacher  of  this  branch  was  a  Chinese 
gentleman  who  learned  his  English  at  Hongkong. 
The  first  thing  to  be  done  with  me  was  to  teach 
me  the  alphabet.  When  the  teacher  grew  tired  he 
set  some  advanced  pupils  to  teach  me.  The  let- 
ters sounded  rather  funny,  I  must  say.  It  took  me 
two  days  to  learn  them.  The  letter  £  was  the 


HOW   I    PREPARED   FOR   AMERICA.  103 

hardest  one  to  pronounce,  but  I  soon  learned  to 
give  it,  with  a  peculiar  roll  of  the  tongue  even. 
We  were  taught  to  read  and  write  English  and 
managed  by  means  of  primers  and  phrase-books 
to  pick  up  a  limited  knowledge  of  the  language. 
A  year  thus  passed  in  study  and  pastime.  Sun- 
days were  given  to  us  to  spend  as  holidays. 

It  was  in  the  month  of  May  when  we  were  ex- 
amined in  our  English  studies  and  the  best  thirty 
were  selected  to  go  to  America,  their  proficiency  in 
Chinese,  their  general  deportment  and  their  rec- 
ord also  being  taken  into  account. 

There  was  great  rejoicing  among  our  friends 
and  kindred.  For  the  cadet's  gilt  button  and  rank 
were  conferred  on  us,  which,  like  the  first  literary 
degree,  was  a  step  towards  fortune,  rank  and  in- 
fluence. Large  posters  were  posted  up  at  the  front 
doors  of  our  homes,  informing  the  world  in  gold 
characters  of  the  great  honor  which  had  come  to 
the  family. 

We  paid  visits  of  ceremony  to  the  Tautai,  chief 
officer  of  the  department,  and  to  the  American 
consul-general,  dressed  in  our  official  robes  and 


104  WHEN   I   WAS   A   BOY    IN   CHINA. 

carried  in  fine  carriages.  By  the  first  part  of  June, 
we  were  ready  for  the  ocean  journey.  We  bade 
our  friends  farewell  with  due  solemnity,  for  the 
thought  that  on  our  return  after  fifteen  years  of 
study  abroad  half  of  them  might  be  dead,  made 
us  rather  serious.  But  the  sadness  of  parting  was 
soon  over  and  homesickness  and  dreariness  took 
its  place,  as  the  steamer  steamed  out  of  the  river 
and  our  native  country  grew  indistinct  in  the  twi- 
light. 


CHAPTER  XI!. 

FIRST    EXPERIENCES     IN    AMERICA. 

AFTER  a  stormy  voyage  of  one  week, with  the 
usual  accompaniment  of  seasickness,  we 
landed  at  Yokohama,  in  the  Country  of  the  Rising 
Sun.  For  Japan  means  "  sun-origin."  The  Japa- 
nese claim  to  be  descendants  of  the  sun,  instead 
of  being  an  off-shoot  of  the  Chinese  race. 

During  the  four  days  on  shore  we  young  Chinese 
saw  many  strange  things;  the  most  remarkable 
being  the  steam-engine.  We  were  told  that  those 
iron  rails  running  parallel  for  a  long  distance  were 
the  "  fire-car  road."  I  was  wondering  how  a  car 
could  run  on  them,  and  driven  by  fire,  too,  as  I 
understood  it,  when  a  locomotive  whizzed  by, 
screeching  and  ringing  its  bell.  That  was  the  first 
iron-horse  we  had  ever  seen,  and  it  made  a  pro- 
found impression  on  us.  We  made  a  number  of 


106  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY    IN   CHINA, 

other  remarkable  and  agreeable  discoveries.  We 
were  delighted  to  learn  that  the  Japanese  studied 
the  same  books  as  we  and  worshiped  our  Confu- 
cius, and  that  we  could  converse  with  them  in 
writing,  pretty  much  as  deaf  and  dumb  people  do. 
We  learned  that  the  way  they  lived  and  dressed 
was  like  that  in  vogue  in  the  time  of  Confucius. 
Their  mode  of  dressing  the  hair  and  their  custom 
of  sitting  on  mats  laid  on  the  floor  is  identical  with 
ancient  Chinese  usage. 

When  our  brief  stay  came  to  an  end,  we  went 
aboard  the  steamer  City  of  Peking,  which  reached 
San  Francisco  in  nineteen  days.  Our  journey 
across  the  Pacific  was  made  in  the  halcyon  weather. 
The  ocean  was  as  gentle  as  a  lamb  for  the  most 
part,  although  at  times  it  acted  in  such  a  way  as  to 
suggest  a  raging  lion. 

San  Francisco  in  1873  was  the  paradise  of  the 
self-exiled  Chinese.  We  boys  who  came  to  study 
under  the  auspices  of  the  Chinese  government  and 
under  the  protection  of  the  American  eagle,  were 
objects  of  some  attention  from  the  press.  Many 
of  its  representatives  came  to  interview  us. 


FIRST   EXPERIENCES    IN   AMERICA.  107 

The  city  impressed  my  young  imagination  with 
its  lofty  buildings  —  their  solidity  and  elegance. 
The  depot  with  its  trains  running  in  and  out  was  a 
great  attraction.  But  the  "modern  conveniences" 
of  gas  and  running  water  and  electric  bells  and 
elevators  were  what  excited  wonder  and  stimu- 
lated investigation. 

Nothing  occurred  on  our  Eastward  journey  to 
mar  the  enjoyment  of  our  first  ride  on  the  steam- 
cars —  excepting  a  train  robbery,  a  consequent 
smash-up  of  the  engine,  and  the  murder  of  the 
engineer.  We  were 'quietly  looking  out  of  the 
windows  and  gazing  at  the  seemingly  intermina- 
ble prairies  when  the  train  suddenly  bounded 
backward,  then  rushed  forward  a  few  feet,  and, 
then  meeting  some  resistance,  started  back  again. 
Then  all  was  confusion  and  terror.  Pistol-shots 
could  be  made  out  above  the  cries  of  frightened 
passengers.  Women  shrieked  and  babies  cried. 
Our  party,  teachers  and  pupils,  jumped  from  our 
seats  in  dismay  and  looked  out  through  the  win- 
dows for  more  light  on  the  subject.  What  we  saw 
was  enough  to  make  our  hair  stand  on  end.  Two 


I08  WHEN    I    WAS   A    BOY    IN   CHINA. 

ruffianly  men  held  a  revolver  in  each  hand  and 
seemed  to  be  taking  aim  at  us  from  the  short  dis- 
tance of  forty  feet  or  thereabouts.  Our  teachers 
told  us  to  crouch  down  for  our  lives.  We  obeyed 
with  trembling  and  fear.  Doubtless  many  prayers 
were  most  fervently  offered  to  the  gods  of  China  at 
the  time.  Our  teachers  certainly  prayed  as  they 
had  never  done  before.  One  of  them  was  overheard 
calling  upon  all  the  gods  of  the  Chinese  Pantheon 
to  come  and  save  him.  In  half  an  hour  the  agony 
and  suspense  were  over.  A  brakeman  rushed 
through  with  a  lamp  in  his  hand.  He  told  us  that 
the  train  had  been  robbed  of  its  gold  bricks,  by  five 
men,  three  of  whom,  dressed  like  Indians,  rifled 
the  baggage  car  while  the  others  held  the  passen- 
gers at  bay ;  that  the  engine  was  hopelessly 
wrecked,  the  engineer  killed ;  that  the  robbers  had 
escaped  on  horseback  with  their  booty ;  and  that 
men  had  been  sent  to  the  nearest  telegraph  station 
to  "  wire "  for  another  engine  and  a  supply  of 
workmen.  One  phase  of  American  civilization 
was  thus  indelibly  fixed  upon  our  minds. 

We  reached   Springfield,  Mass.,  in   due   time, 


FIRST   EXPERIENCES    IN   AMERICA.  109 

where  we  were  distributed  among  some  of  the 
best  families  in  New  England.  As  liberal  provis- 
ion having  been  made  for  our  care  by  the  Chinese 
government,  there  was  no  difficulty  in  finding  nice 
people  to  undertake  our  "  bringing-up,"  although 
I  now  know  that  a  philanthropic  spirit  must  have 
inspired  all  who  assumed  the  responsibility  of  our 
training  and  education.  We  were  assigned  two  by 
two ;  and  it  was  my  good  fortune  to  be  put  into  the 
hands  of  a  most  motherly  lady  in  Springfield.  She 
came  after  us  in  a  hack.  As  I  was  pointed  out  to 
her,  she  put  her  arms  around  me  and  kissed  me. 
This  made  the  rest  of  the  boys  laugh,  and  perhaps 
I  got  rather  red  in  the  face ;  however,  I  would  say 
nothing  to  show  my  embarrassment.  But  that  was 
the  first  kiss  I  ever  had  had  since  my  infancy. 

Our  first  appearance  in  an  American  household 
must  have  been  a  funny  occurrence  to  its  members. 
We  were  dressed  in  our  full  Chinese  costume, 
consisting  of  cue,  satin  shoes,  skull-cap,  silk  gown, 
loose  jacket  and  white  linen  blouse.  We  were  both 
thirteen  years  of  age,  but  smaller  than  American 
boys  at  eleven. 


IIO  WHEN    I   WAS   A   BOY   IN   CHINA. 

Sunday  came.  After  lunch,  the  lady  and  her 
son  came  up  to  our  room  to  tell  us  to  get  ready  to 
go  to  Sabbath-school  with  them.  We  knew  very 
little  English  at  the  time.  The  simplest  Anglo- 
Saxon  words  were  still  but  slightly  known  to  us. 

i 

We  caught  the  word  "school"  only.  We  sup- 
posed that  at  last  our  ordeal  in  an  American 
school  was  at  hand.  We  each  took  a  cloth-wrap- 
per and  began  to  tie  up  a  pile  of  books  with  it,  A 
la  Chinoise,  when  our  guardians,  returning,  made  us 
understand  by  signs  and  otherwise  that  no  books 
were  needed. 

Well,  we  four  set  out,  passed  Court  Square,  and 
walked  up  the  steps  of  the  First  Church. 

*'  It  is  a  church,"  said  my  companion  in  Chinese. 

We  were  confirmed  in  our  suspicions  on  peep- 
ing in  and  seeing  the  people  rise  to  sing.  "  Church ! 
church!"  we  muttered,  and  rushed  from  the  edi- 
fice with  all  the  speed  we  could  command.  We 
did  not  stop  till  we  got  into  our  room,  while  our 
American  friends,  surprised  at  this  move  on  our 
part  and  failing  to  overtake  us,  went  back  to  the 
church. 


FIRST   EXPERIENCE"!    IN   AMERICA.  Ill 

We  learned  English  by  object-lessons.  At  table 
we  were  always  told  the  names  of  certain  dishes, 
and  then  assured  that  if  we  could  not  remember 
the  name  we  were  not  to  partake  of  that  article  of 
food.  Taught  by  this  method,  our  progress  was 
rapid  and  surprising,  * 


Classified  Lisl.  —  Birthday. 


BIRTHDAY. 

ARNOLD  BIRTHDAY  BOOK.     With  many  original 

Poems.    Cloth,  gilt,  $1.00 ;  seal,  $2. 50. 

The  editors  are  the  two  daughters  of  the  poet,  who  have  gons 
over  the  various  works  of  their  father  with  a  judicious,  as  well  as  a 
loving  hand,  and  have  added  a  collection  of  gems  worthy  of  tht 
publisher's  setting.  — Interior,  Chicago. 

LITTLE  FOLKS'  BIRTHDAY  BOOK.  Arranged  by 
AMANDA  B.  HARRIS.  Twelve  full-page  illustrations  in  color, 
and  pictures  for  every  day.  Square  i8mo,  cloth,  tinted  edges, 

t  I.OO. 

With  each  rhyme  is  a  childish  picture,  some  of  tliem  being  very 
clever,  the  whole  bound  ;^  a  very  artistic  cover,  and  one  calculated 
to  amuse  and  please  children.  —  Churchman. 

POETS'  BIRTHDAY  BOOK  (The).  Arranged  by 
AMANDA  B.  HARRIS,  with  original  poems  for  each  month  by 
Longfellow,  Whittier,  Will  Carleton  and  others.  Twenty-four 
full-page  illustrations,  square  i8mo,  cloth,  tinted  edges,  $1.00; 
seal,  $2.50. 
You  cannot  select  anything  prettier  for  a  gift  book.  —  Herald 

tf  Truth. 

SCRIPTURE  BIRTHDAY  BOOK.  iSmo,  illustrated, 
cloth,  $1.00;  seal,  $2  50. 

SHAKESPEARE  BIRTHDAY  BOOK.  With  por- 
trait and  twelve  illustrations.  i8mo,  cloth,  $1.00;  seal,  £1.50. 
This  exquisite  little  birthday  book  cannot  help  meeting  with 

Immediate  and  universal  favor.  —  B.  B.  Bulletin, 

WEDDING  DAY  BOOK.  Edited  by  KATHHRINB  LEE 
BATES,  with  original  illustrations  by  George  F.  Barnes.  Small 
quarto,  extra  cloth,  bevelled,  gilt  edges,  $1.25. 


Classified  List.  —  Standard  Miscellaneous. 

THE  TRIPLE  "  E."      By  MRS.    S.  R.   GRAHAM   CLARK. 
121110,  paper,  illustrated,  25  cts.     Cloth,  $1.50. 
It  cannot  fail  to  make  a  strong  impression  on  the  minds  of  those 

who  read  it.  —  B.  B.  Bulletin. 

THUCYDIDES.  Translated  into  English  with  marginal 
analysis  and  index.  By  B.  JOWETT,  M.  A.,  Master  of  Balliol 
College,  Professor  of  Greek  in  the  University  of  Oxford,  Doc- 
tor of  Theology  in  the  University  of  Leyden.  Edited  with 
introduction  to  American  edition  by  Andrew  P.  Peabody,  D.  D. 
LL.  D.  8vo,  13.50.  Half  calf,  $6.00. 

WARLOCK    O'    GLENWARLOCK.      By  GEORGB 

MACDONALD.     izmo,  fully  illustrated,  $1.50. 
At  his  best,  there  are  few  contemporary  novelists  so  well  worth 
reading  as  MacDonald.  —  Boston  Journal. 

WEIGHED  AND  WANTING.  By  GKORGK  MACDON- 
ALD. i2mo,  cloth,  $1.50. 

WHAT'S  MINE'S  MINE.     By  GBORGB  MACDONALD. 

$1.50. 

Let  all  who  enjoy  a  book  full  of  fire  and  life  and  purpose  read 
this  capital  story.  —  Woman's  Journal. 
WILD      FLOWERS,     AND      WHERE     THEY 

GROW.      By    AMANDA    B.    HARRIS.      8vo,    extra  cloth, 

beautifully  bound,  gilt  edges,  $3.00. 

It  is  a  book  in  which  all  true  lovers  of  nature  will  delight. 
—  B.  B.  Bulletin, 

WONDER  STORIES  OP  SCIENCE.      Uniform  with 

"  Plucky  Boys,"  iimo,  cloth,  $1.50. 

To  improve  as  well  as  to  amuse  young  people  is  the  object  of 
these  twenty-one  sketches,  and  they  fill  this  purpose  wonderfully 
well.  —  Texas  Sift  ings. 

WITHIN  THE  SHADOW.     By  DOROTHY  HOLROYD. 

121110,  cloth,  $1.25. 

"  The  author  has  skill  in  invention  with  the  purest  seiirimen* 
»nd  good  natural  style."  —  Boston  Globe. 


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